Illustrations
LS Plate 96 from the John Reeves Collection of Zoological Drawings from Canton, China 1774-1856.
Dramatic improvements in print quality during the 19th century changed the face of scientific illustration.
Copper plate engravings of the late 18th century were followed by aquatint engraving in the early nineteenth century and lithography in the mid-19th century. These techniques marked a golden age of printed, largely hand coloured natural history illustration; an aesthetic and scientific achievement.
The Museum Library holds materials from the finest practitioners of printed natural history iconography, including:
- George Edwards (1694-1773)
- John Gould (1804-1881)
- Pierre Joseph Redoute (1759-1840)
