Lot 145: REICHENBACH, HEINRICH GOTTLIEB LUDWIG.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Die vollständigste Naturgeschichte der Vögel des In- und Auslandes. Dresden and Leipzig: Hofmeister, 1845-1862

14 volumes, 4to (278 x 215mm.), 1081 engraved plates, 975 coloured by hand, contemporary half calf, spines skilfully restored, 3 volumes bound differently

Fine Bird Books, p.102; Nissen IVB 765; Zimmer, p.505

H. Bradley Martin, bookplate in 11 of the volumes

the bradley martin copy of this rare iconography on german, foreign and exotic birds and the largest illustrated german work on birds. This set has now been augmented by the addition of Naturgeschichte der Vögel Neuhollands and Deutschlands Vögel, which were originally lacking in the Martin copy. Also present is a related publication on Kingfishers (Dresden and Leipzig 1851). this is therefore the most "complete" set to appear on the market for decades.

"Under the above title are grouped various parts of a detailed, comprehensive work which was issued under a variety of cover-titles at irregular intervals in a most confusing manner. The entire work is extremely puzzling as to arrangement and method of appearance and I can find no complete and accurate collation of the various components... Two other titles are sometimes considered as part of the above general work, the Deutschlands Vögel, 1842, and Die Vögel Neuhollands, 1845-50. Both seem to have been issued also separately..." (Zimmer 505).

This is a nearly complete set: 149 pages of text are not present, but there are 8 plates more than Nissen indicates (text of volumes III/1 (i.e. pp. 144) and III/3 (i.e. pp. 5) not present; volumes III/5 & III/7 contain 8 more plates than indicated by Nissen). Nissen in error states that Deutschlands Vögel has 62 plates, however the first 7 plates were never published.