Keulemans Cinnyris Fuliginosus. Carmelite Sun-bird lithograph c1878.
by Keulemans, John Gerrard
Stunningly gorgeous little sunbirds lithograph by J.G. Keulemans, c1878.
Exquisitely delineated and superbly coloured. Signed JGK, this is a beautiful original hand-coloured lithograph by eminent bird illustrator and naturalist John Gerrard Keulemans (1842-1912) for A Monograph of the Nectariniidae, or, Family of Sunbirds by George Ernest Shelley (1840-1910), published in London between 1876 and 1880.
Keulemans' skill in the art of lithography is evident in his hand-coloured lithographs for this rarely-seen publication. In 1869 fellow ornithologist and colleague of John Gould, Richard Bowdler-Sharp persuaded the well-travelled Dutchman, who signed his lithographs JGK, to move from Brussels to London, the most important centre during the late 19th century for grand hand-coloured publications illustrating flora and fauna. Keulemans had a thorough scientific training in the illustration of birds and was one of the finest exponents, mainly through the maximum fluidity of representation by lithography.
Page size: 318 x 247mm (12.1/2 x 9.3/4 inches), in fine condition, except for a few faint soiling spots.
Stock Number: apJGKs-b1Price: $250.00