BIRD BOOKS AND BIRD ART FRONTISPIECE Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Fig. 4 BIRD BOOKS AND BIRD ART AN OUTLINE OF THE LITERARY HISTORY AND ICONOGRAPHY OF DESCRIPTIVE ORNITHOLOGY BASED PRINCIPALLY ON THE COLLECTION OF BOOKS CONTAINING PLATES WITH FIGURES OF BIRDS AND THEIR EGGS NOW IN THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY AT COPENHAGEN AND INCLUDING A CATALOGUE OF THESE WORKS WRITTEN AND COMPILED BY yEAN ANKER ISSUED BY THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY COPENHAGEN TO COMMEMORATE THE INAUGURATION OF' THE NEW BUILDING OF THE LIBRARY Springer -Science+ Business Media, B. V. 1979 FRONTISPIECE FIGURES OF DEAD BIRDS FROM ORIGINAL WATER-COLOURS BY JOHANNES LARSEN. Fig. 1. THE CORN-BuNTING. Emberiza calandra L. The water-colour dated April 17, 1907 Fig. 2. THE WHITE WAGTAIL. M otacilla alba L. (Male in first summer). The water-colour dated April 10, 1907 Figs. 3--4. THE GOLDCREST. Regulus regulus L. (Adult female). The water-colours dated April 2, 1907 With the kind permission of the publisher. BIRD BOOKS AND BIRD ART AN OUTLINE OF THE LITERARY HISTORY AND ICONOGRAPHY OF DESCRIPTIVE ORNITHOLOGY BASED PRINCIP ALLY ON THE COLLECTION OF BOOKS CONTAINING PLATES WITH FIGURES OF BIRDS AND THEIR EGGS NOW IN THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY AT COPENHAGEN AND INCLUDING A CATALOGUE OF THESE WORKS WRITTEN AND COMPILED BY YEAN ANKER ISSUED BY THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY COPENHAGEN TO COMMEMORATE THE INAUGURATION OF THE NEW BUILDING OF THE LIBRARY Springer-Science+Business Media, B.V. 1938 ISBN 978-94-011-7985-0 ISBN 978-94-011-7983-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-94-011-7983-6 Copyright 1938 by Springer Science+ Business Media Dordrecht Originally published by Dr. W. Junk B. V. , Publishers, The Hague in 1938 SOFTCOVER REPRINT OF THE HARDCOVER lST ED1TlON 1938 * * The b/ocks for the illustrations have been made by WENDT & ]ENSEN, Copenhagen. * The plates have been printed by 'DET BERLlNGSKE BOGTRYKKERi', Copenhagen. * The coloured plates have been produced by the four-colour process. Dedicated to the memory of YOHAN FREDERIK CLASSEN the great collector of books on the natural sciences LIST OF CONTENTS. PAGES Acknowledgement. .. IX Preface ... XI-XIII Principal abbreviations used, more especially in the catalogue XV List of illustrations " XVII-XVIII I. An outline of the literary history and iconography of descriptive ornithology 1-87 1. Pictures and records of birds up to the invention of printing and the development of the woodcut '" 3-6 2. The art of printing. Woodcuts and engravings. Belon and the encyclopedists ... 6-12 3. The progress of engraving. The first works containing ornithological plates. Information about fauna given in descriptions of countries and in travel books up to the last qu;yter of the 17th century . 13-19 4. Willughby and John Ray. The first works in which plates are prominent. Works on fauna and journeys up to the last third of the 18th century.. 19-29 5. Progress in descriptive ornithology, systematics and nomenclature. Linn<eus. Brisson... 29-31 6. Buffon and the 'Planches enluminees'. The ornithological literature in the last third of the 18th century 32-41 7. A brief survey of the literature and iconography of descriptive ornithology in the 19th and 20th centuries '" 41-87 II. A catalogue of the collection of books containing plates with figures of birds and their eggs now in the University Library at Copenhagen 89-215 Bibliography... 217-228 Index of names 229-245 Geographical index 247-251 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. In the beginning of 1938 the section of the University Library devoted to natural sciences and medicine will take possession of a new, modem building. The desire to mark this great and happy event in the history of the Library suggested the issue of a publication which should convey an idea of the standard of its collections and also be of use to scientific research. It would not, however, have been possible to bring out this book if the Library had not received financial aid from 'Det Classenske Fideikommis' and from 'Rask-0rsted Fondet'. On behalf of the Library, therefore, I tender cordial thanks to the Trustees of both these institutions for the funds granted towards the pre­ paration and publication of the book. Svend Dahl Librarian. PREFACE. This is a book about books and pictures. It is divided into two parts, the first 'An outline of the literary history and iconography of descriptive ornithology' to some extent depending on the second 'A catalogue of the collection of books containing plates with figures of birds and their eggs now in the University Library at Copenhagen'. When the Chief Librarian of the University Library at Copenhagen first suggested to the writer that he should produce a book on the ornithological literature in the library, careful deliberation of the reasons for and against the proposal became necessary. Trained and educated as a biologist and as a zoologist, and interested chiefly in zoological history and biology, he had to consider closely whether he could undertake a task that, although only theoretically, involved an intimate knowledge of a special branch of zoology. That in spite of preliminary hesitation the work eventually was undertaken is due firstly to the fact that literary and bibliographic experience could largely be employed in its fulfilment; secondly, an offer of expert ornitho­ logical assistance was received from Finn Salomonsen, the well-known ornithologist, who has been kind enough to identify the birds figured on the plates and to read through the manuscript of the first part of the book. The practical suggestions he thus made, and his advice, have materially assisted in the production of the work. The subject matter is more fully treated in the part of the first section of the book dealing with the period up to 1800 than in that dealing with the subsequent period; for obvious reasom this is also the case as regards the sections on Scandinavian literature and its illustrations. It is hoped, however, that the general effect of the survey of the most important works on descriptive ornithology and its illustrations presented in this part will not be spoiled by these inequalities. The accompanying catalogue contains short notes on the history and contents of the works listed in it, on the artist, or artists, responsible for the originals for the plates, and on the production of the plates themselves. The collection contains a number of valuable antique works in large format, of great interest bibliogra­ phically, and much in demand, among which is John James Audubon's 'The birds of America'. As must be the case in every large library of any age, there are also individual examples of rarities such as the original edition of Thomas Pennant's 'Indian zoology', of which only a few copies are known, and the folio edition of Johann Andreas Naumann's plates; the latter is incomplete, as are the majority of the few examples now in existence. An even greater bibliographic rarity is the copy of the first volume of the text to Nau­ mann's plates as it contains all the title-pages issued for this volume, thus surely being unique. Although the collection cannot compete with the more wealthy foreign libraries, that it contains so many antique works as it does is very largely due to that great patron of literature, Major-General Johan Frederik Classen (1725--92), an industrialist and a landowner whose name is especially connected with the development of the town called by him Frederiksyxrk. From comparatively modest circumstances this great man worked his way up to become one of the most important personalities of his country. Impelled hy his interest in hooks he bought ancl bought, both at home and abroad, until he had formed a library XII so large that at his death it was valued at over 100,000 thalers and consisted of about 20,000 volumes. Although his collection was not, strictly speaking, that of a bibliophile, it gave Classen a position in the first rank of the contemporary collectors in his country in this the golden age for bibliophiles. In his will he left his whole library to the public, with funds for its development. In 1867, when the 'Classenske Bibliothek' had reached a total of about 30,000 volumes, it was broken up and the greater part of it - including, especially, the natural science section - incorporated in the University Library, which was thereby enriched with a number of valuable and important works. A great many of the large antique tomes illustrated with cop­ perplates, and mentioned in the accompanying catalogue, originate from this source. The University Lib­ rary still benefits from Classen's munificence, as it receives an annual sum from the 'Glassenske Fidei­ kommis' founded by him, with which it purchases works on natural science, for preference on zoology. It has thus been able to increase its collection of ornithological literature. The composition of a book such as the present one necessitates assistance from many quarters. So many institutions and private persons in Denmark and abroad have been kind enough to contribute to it by supplying information of various kinds that space is not available to mention all of them. Of especial value in this respect was a visit the author and compiler was able to pay in the summer of 1936 to several German libraries. This was made possible by a donation from Dr. and Fru V. Eilschou H otm, for which most cordial thanks must here be expressed. In addition to the courtesies which have already been acknowledged, special mention must be made of Dr. Ejnar Munksgaard, the publisher of the book, who has assisted in its publication in every pO,ssible way. Thanks must also be offered to the bird-painter Johannes Larsen for contributing the original water­ colours reproduced in the frontispiece; to Hr.