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AUDUBON, John James (1785-1851)
Passenger Pigeon [Pl. 62]
[Pl. 62]. Hand-coloured engraving with aquatint and etching by R. Havell, paper watermarked "J. Whatman/1836". In excellent condition with the exception of two expertly mended tears on right margin not extending within platemark. Plate mark: 25 7/8 x 20 3/4 inches. Sheet size: 37 13/16 x 25 7/16 inches.
From the first edition of "The Birds of America."
Audubon wrote with unintentional pathos of the Passenger Pigeon, "When an individual is seen gliding through the woods and close to the observer, it passes like a thought, and on trying to see it again, the eye searches in vain; the bird is gone." At the time when Audubon drew this image, the Passenger Pigeon was one of the most numerous species of bird on Earth. He was clearly fascinated by the species and has left us, in addition to the beautiful image of these doomed birds, a detailed and wonderfully poetic account of their habits: "The air was literally filled with Pigeons; the light of noon-day was obscured as by an eclipse...and the continued buzz of wings had a tendency to lull my senses to repose...I cannot describe to you the extreme beauty of their aerial evolutions, when a Hawk chanced to press upon the rear of a flock. At once, like a torrent, and with a noise like thunder, they rushed into a compact mass...In these almost solid masses, they darted forward in undulating and angular lines, descended and swept close over the earth with inconceivable velocity, mounted perpendicularly so as to resemble a vast column, and, when high were seen wheeling and twisting within their continued lines, which then resembled the coils of a gigantic serpent...As soon as the Pigeons discover a sufficiency of food to entice them to alight, they fly around in circles...During their evolutions...the dense mass which they form exhibits a beautiful appearance, as it changes its direction, now displaying a glistening sheet of azure...and anon, suddenly presenting a mass of rich deep purple...When alighted, they are seen industriously throwing up the withered leaves in quest of fallen mast. The rear ranks are continually rising, passing over the main body, and alighting in front, in such rapid succession, that the whole flock seems still on the wing. The quantity of ground thus swept is astonishing...On the ground they walk with ease, as well as on branches, frequently jerking their beautiful tails, and moving their necks backwards and forwards in the most graceful manner" (J. J. Audubon, The Birds of America, New York & Philadelphia: 1842, vol.V, pp.27-28).
As the result of hunting and the settlers' need for land, less than 5,000 birds survived at the beginning of 1898. The last record of a wild Passenger Pigeon is of a single bird that was shot in 1900 in Ohio. A few birds did survive in captivity, but by 1909 the Cincinnati Zoological Gardens had the last three remaining birds, two males and a female. By 1910 only the female was left. This last surviving bird was affectionately called Martha, after the wife of George Washington. On September 1, 1914, Martha died. This is possibly the only instance in history where we know the exact day of a species' extinction. This plate is found in two variant forms: one with the imprint line "Engraved by R.Havell, Jnr. Printed & Coloured by R. Havell, Senr. London 1829," the second (as with the present copy) reading "Engraved, Printed and Coloured by R.Havell."
J. J. Audubon, The Birds of America New York & Philadelphia: 1842, vol.V, p.25; Errol Fuller, Extinct Birds New York: 2001 p. 188; Susanne M. Low, A Guide to Audubon's Birds of America New Haven & New York: 2002, p.65 (variant 2 of 2).
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#9353 $29,000.00 
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© 2002-2005 Donald A. Heald
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