A Synopsis Of The Birds of North America

Edinburgh and London: Adam and Charles Black; Longman, Rees, Brown, Green, and Longman, 1839. First edition. Hardcover. Very Good. Octavo in attractive modern dark brown rice-paper covered boards, custom slipcase. (1), half-title+ xii+359 pp. A generally clean copy, bit of foxing to the prelims and title, occasionally in the text. The companion volume to Audubon's massive four-volume "Birds of North America" (1827-1838), it serves as an index to that collection. There are 491 individual entries, each containing the formal Latin name as well as the English translation of the name of each bird that appeared in the set, the number of the corresponding plate, a paragraph of description detail, and information as to where each species is commonly found in North America. In 1826, Audubon went to Europe to find a publisher with not only bthe interest but the capability to issue his folio hand-colored collection. He was particularly well received in Edinburgh and, after the king subscribed to his books, in London as well. it was not until his return to the U.S. that he issued a smaller (octavo, 7 volume) set of his "Birds