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ELLIOT, Daniel Giraud (1835-1915). A Monograph of the Paradiseidae, or Birds of Paradise. [London]: by the Author, 1873.
ELLIOT, Daniel Giraud (1835-1915). A Monograph of the Paradiseidae, or Birds of Paradise. [London]: by the Author, 1873. 2 o (592 x 472 mm). Title-page, dedication leaf, list of subscribers. One uncolored lithographic plate of generic characteristics on india paper mounted and 36 hand-colored lithographic plates by Smit after Joseph Wolf colored by J.D. White, printed by M. and N. Hanhart. (Some occasional very faint marginal darkening, plate 19 with tiny marginal tear mended on verso.) Contemporary green morocco, sides with wide gilt border, spine elaborately gilt, gilt edges (minor rubbing to spine ends and corners); cloth folding case. Provenance : Charles Goddard Weld (bookplate). FIRST EDITION OF ELLIOT'S GREAT WORK ON THE BIRDS OF PARADISE, ONE OF THE MOST ADMIRED BIRD BOOKS EVER PRODUCED. "The plates in this work, almost as magnificent as the birds they portray, were the fruits of Elliot's considerable wealth, Wolf's great artistry and both men's profound knowledge and love of birds" (Dance). Elliot writes of the illustrations: "The drawings of Mr. Wolf will, I am sure, receive the admiration of those who see them; for, like all that artist's productions, they cannot be surpassed, if equalled, at the present time. Mr. J. Smit has lithographed the drawings with his usual conscientious fidelity, and in his share of the work has left me nothing to desire ... . In the colouring of the plates Mr. J.D. White has faithfully followed the originals; and in the difficult portions where it was necessary to produce the metallic hues, he has been very successful." Elliot regards "brightly coloured waving plumes" as a typical characteristic rather than an indispensable feature of this beautiful species which are presented in three sub-families, Paradiseae, containing the typical Birds of Paradise and their allies, Epimachinae, those species "characterised by long, slender, somewhat curved bills," and Tectonarchinae, "species that are in the habit of erecting bowers." The work is dedicated to Alfred Russel Wallace, to whom Elliot expresses his indebtedness "for nearly all our information regarding the habits of many species." Anker 131; Dance, The Art of Natural History, p. 132; Fine Bird Books (1990) p. 95; Nissen IVB 296; Wood p. 331; Zimmer p. 207.