Elizabeth Gould Sacred Kingfisher, John Gould Halcyon Sanctus

by John and Elizabeth Gould

John Gould print of Australian Kingfishers with worm.

Reproduced by Lansdowne Press in 1972 and limited to 500 copies, this print was reproduced from a hand-coloured lithograph by Elizabeth Gould (1804-1841), after the sketch by her husband, John Gould for The Birds of Australia published in London between 1840 and 1848.

John Gould (1804-1881), a naturalist with a passion for birds, was known as "the Bird Man". He combined an excellent eye for detail with business acumen, and secured the finest lithographers to produce large hand-coloured lithographs of birds from different regions of the world - assisted by his artist wife Elizabeth Gould, who refined her husband's sketches and produced around 600 of his lithographs. (Elizabeth died at 37, following the birth of their eighth child after their return to England from Australia. Gould's superb original hand-coloured lithographs have never been surpassed in quality.

This image is the same size as originally published, 21 x 14.5 inches (535 x 365mm). The paper is not as good quality as the original lithographs were, and the ink colour does not have the same longevity as early colour, so we would recommend the use of U/V protective glass to minimize fading.