John Gould Australian Graucalus mentalis, Varied Cuckoo print

by Gould, John

John Gould Cuckoo, Graucalus mentalis reproduction print.

Published by Lansdowne Press in 1974 and limited to 500 copies, this print was reproduced from a hand-coloured lithograph by Henry Constantine Richter after the drawing by John Gould for his The Birds of Australia, published in London between 1840 and 1848.

John Gould (1804-1881), known as 'the Bird Man', was a naturalist whose love was the field ornithology. He combined his business acumen and fine eye for detail, and employed fine bird lithographers to illustrate birds from around the world. While most people have heard of John Gould, many do not know that his artist wife Elizabeth Gould (1804-1841) finessed her husband's field sketches for lithographic stone plates to be made. She also did over 600 lithographs for his grand publications. Elizabeth died after the birth of their eighth child following their return from Australia. Elizabeth was coached in lithography by the young scientific illustrator at the Zoological Museum, Edward Lear, who completed Elizabeth's unfinished lithographs after her death.

This image is of original published size, 21 x 14.5 inches (approx. 53 x 37cm) and in good condition. The paper is not as thick as the original lithographs were, and the ink colour does not have the same longevity as early colour, so we recommend the use of U/V protective glass to minimize fading.