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Title: Handbook of Audubon Prints by Lois Elmer Bannon, Taylor Clark ISBN: 1-56554-428-5 Publisher: Pelican Pub Co Pub. Date: November, 1998 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.25 (4 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Not a perfect book, but enjoyable and well worth having.
Comment: For those who are interested in Audubon prints, this book is a good introduction, but if you are serious about collecting or very interested in Audubon, it could raise more questions for you than it answers. Don't expect a comprehensive or 100-percent accurate treatment of Audubon or Audubon prints from this rather short book.
Unfortunately, some of the areas of weakness are important to collectors. For instance, the approach to authentication is simplistic and by no means comprehensive. The book doesn't really address how to distinguish hand coloring from printed color, or the fact that hand-colored reproductions of Havells exist. The authors barely mention plate mark, which is an extremely valuable tool for authenticating Havells. In spite of these shortcomings, the book provides a nice overview of all the major editions of Audubon's prints with a good mix of biography, history and nitty-gritty details.
Beware, however, that brevity comes at a price -- this book has some gaps. Bannon and Clark do not mention the second issue of the Imperial Folio edition of The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America, or the existence of a restrike of the Imperial Folio plate, The White Wolf. (You can find more information on both topics in the recently published book, John James Audubon in the West, edited by Sarah Boehme).
Information in Bannon and Clark is not always accurate -- e.g., the later edition octavo dates. (Try Ron Tyler's book, Audubon's Great National Work, for a more detailed account of the octavo Birds). There are also more significant errors. For instance, the number of prints from Nagel and Weingaertner in any given octavo quads set varies; the set that Bannon and Clark looked at just happened to have seventeen plates by Nagel and Weingaertner, but they give that as the number for all sets.
The price information in this book is out of date even though the authors include some appendices that attempt to give an idea of price inflation. Still, the lists do provide an indication of relative prices. As long as you realize that these lists represent a single dealer's opinion and experience, and that other dealers do not necessarily rank the plates in the exact way that Clark ranks them, you should find this information very helpful.
In the end, I have to say that I like this book, and often find myself turning to it for background or price information. Right now, it is the best book -- really, the only book -- available that is specifically geared towards Audubon collectors. Although that will change over time as more books come out, I doubt that Bannon and Clark will become superfluous...it is a good addition to any Audubon library.
Rating: 4
Summary: A Must for the Serious Audubon Collector
Comment: This handbook fills a void in the vast library of Audubon publications. It focuses on the various publications of Audubon and his family, such as the double elephant folio, the imperials, the miniatures, and the Bien edition. Accurate dates of publication are given along with very helpful clues to distinguishing between various editions. Our 1998 copy contained welcome revisions to the pricing of the double elephant, Bien, and imperial prints. I have found that in the few years since publication, the prices of the larger images have about doubled, and smaller images are about 15 to 20 percent higher in price than what is stated. In fact, whereas a complete folio sold for about $4,000,000.00 as correctly stated in Addendum C, page 128, (back in 1992), a complete folio recently sold at Christies for about $9,000,000.00. One should use this handbook as a handbook. We make regular notes in the margins in the price pages. For example, plate 376 (Trumpeter Swan) was valued at $30,000 in 1997, when I assume the information in the book was assembled. A plate 376 sold in 1999 for $93,250. We have entered this corrected information in our copy.
We highly recommend this handbook for any who wish to collect the work of a master artist/naturalist. The information will assist you in making intelligent purchases from sites such as eBay.
Rating: 1
Summary: OUT OF DATE!!!
Comment: The 4th edition of this "Collectors Handbook" is a reprint of earlier editions rather than a much needed rewrite.
The background information provided in this book IS very interesting and helpful. HOWEVER, the first question asked on the back of this book is "What is the value of an Audubon Print?" This book answers that question with print by print price information (almost 1/3 of the book) that is over 20 years old. NO price information is even given for the Octavo prints.
As a guide for collectors looking for current value information for Audubon prints this book is worthless.
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Title: Audubon Art Prints: A Collector's Guide to Every Edition by Bill Steiner ISBN: 1570035032 Publisher: University of South Carolina Press Pub. Date: June, 2003 List Price(USD): $59.95 |
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Title: A Guide To Collecting Antique Historical Prints by Christopher W. Lane, Carolyn Cades, Donald H. Cresswell, Richard Genga ISBN: 0963692429 Publisher: Philadelphia Print Shop Ltd Pub. Date: 01 September, 1995 List Price(USD): $8.00 |
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Title: John James Audubon: Writings and Drawings (Library of America, 113) by John James Audubon, Christoph Irmscher ISBN: 188301168X Publisher: Library of America Pub. Date: October, 1999 List Price(USD): $40.00 |
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Title: Print Collecting by Silvie Turner ISBN: 1558215077 Publisher: The Lyons Press Pub. Date: 01 October, 1996 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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