Item LIB 61630 Rare Book: John Gould, A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains, London (1831)

Summary

This volume describes birds from the Himalayan Mountains. It was published by English ornithologist John Gould (1804-1881) and illustrated by his wife Elizabeth Gould (1804-1841). Elizabeth is acknowledged in the preface, where the 'well-known abilities of Mrs. Gould [were used] in delineating these birds' are noted. Additionally, she is credited on the plates with 'Drawn from Nature & on stone by E. Gould'.

John and Elizabeth married in 1829 when they were both 24 years old. John was working at the Zoological Society of London as a curator and preserver when a substantial collection of bird specimens from the Himalayan Mountains was acquired. As many of these had not yet been described before in a scientific publication, John saw this as an opportunity to contribute to ornithology.

There are no records of Elizabeth's work prior to her relationship with John. Early on in their marriage she would illustrate specimens for John's clients, helping to provide for the family.

As John was still new to ornithology, he got his mentor Nicholas Vigors to write the text, Vigors was a zoologist and co-founder of the Zoological Society of London. He assisted Gould by scientifically describing the birds and naming the new species. Later John would author similar works himself.

It is believed that Elizabeth learned lithography from artist and nonsense poet Edward Lear (1812-1888). Lear would go on to help the Goulds with their later book 'Birds of Europe'. 'A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains' was the first time Elizabeth tried lithography, and she did so at her husband's request. She would draw the birds onto lithographic plates using John's initial sketches of the taxidermy specimens. Once they were printed by Charles Hullmandel, the illustrations were then coloured by hand. Elizabeth worked at the Zoological Society in Burton Street, where both John and she lived. She was pregnant with her first child while working on these plates.

John was unable to find a publisher willing to take a risk on an unknown, so he decided to publish the work himself. This is something he would continue to do throughout his long career.

This work is found in three different states, one with both birds and background in colour, another with only birds coloured, and an uncoloured state. Museums Victoria's copy is a first issue with birds in colour against an uncoloured background.

Physical Description

Hard-cover volume with green and gold morocco binding, measuring 57cm high. Comprises 80 hand-coloured lithographic plates with backgrounds uncoloured. Remainder of pages contain letterpress, including the title page, list of illustrations and subscriber list.

Significance

This was the first book that John and Elizabeth Gould worked on together, and it showcases Elizabeth's early lithographic work. Lithography was invented in 1798 by Bavarian Alois Senefelder as a cheaper and faster alternative to engraving and etching techniques. However, it didn't immediately take hold in book publishing, and its transmission from Germany to Britain was interrupted by the Napoleonic Wars. Gould's preferred firm Hullmandel was one of the first British companies to use lithography in a way that was commercially viable. Despite the lag of more than 30 years between its development in Germany 1798 and its first use by the Goulds in 'A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains' in 1831, John and Elizabeth Gould are seen as influential early adopters of this technology in British publishing history.

'A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains' describes the first substantial collection of Himalayan birds to reach Europe. Showcasing early lithography, it was the most realistic work of foreign illustrated ornithology published at the time.

Both John and Elizabeth contributed greatly to the development of ornithology through their accurate representation of specimens and would go on to create further works together. This publication features many of the hallmarks of John Gould's substantial body of work: it was self-published on subscription in an impressive folio format and made excellent use of the new method of lithography to publish rapidly on newly available material.

Museums Victoria has an almost complete collection of John Gould's publications purchased from a private collector with the aid of a government grant in the 1970s.