“No one would think of John James Audubon (1785-1851) as a miniaturist. He is known, of course, for having created, if not the largest, then certainly the most widely known printed work ever published. The Birds of America — 435 hand-coloured prints, issued in four volumes, each of +
which might very well weigh, depending on the binding chosen by a subscriber, 50lbs — was published between 1827 and 1838 in London by Audubon and his engraver and printer Robert Havell Jr. Around 120 copies survive today; if sets come up for sale, and they occasionally do, +
they’re usually priced in the vicinity of $10 million. Havell used richly textured Whatman paper, manufactured by two different mills, ‘J. Whatman’ and ‘J. Whatman Turkey Mill’, the finest paper available, measuring roughly 39½ inches by 26½ – more than two by three feet.”
What a treasure!
Apparently, the article points out the man was a slaveholder which, I in my blissful ignorance, never knew. Sigh. History can be such a drag.
Always a shadow somewhere.