Shrikes, Buzzard, Cuckoo & Hawks (Tab. XI)
From Historia Naturalis de Avibus
Jan Jonston, engraved by Matthäus Merian the Elder Amsterdam: Jan Jansson, 1657
Hand-coloured engraving on folio leaf Engraving printed to recto
This folio engraving, Tab. XI from Jan Jonston's Historia Naturalis de Avibus, presents eight birds across five rows in a composition that ranges from the small but formidable shrikes at the top to the stooping kite and perched hawks at the bottom — a survey of European raptors and their allies that combines scientific rigour with genuine drama.
The plate opens with two shrikes, each standing over a freshly killed mouse — a naturalistic detail that immediately communicates something essential about these small but predatory birds. The Lanius Collorio (red-backed shrike) is shown in crisp profile with its distinctive crimson cap, grey flank, and black-and-white tail, its prey rendered with almost clinical precision beneath its feet. Beside it, the Lanius alius Warckengel (great grey shrike) repeats the composition in a darker, more barred plumage, both birds displaying the butcher-bird habit of prey display that made them objects of fascination for Renaissance naturalists.
The middle rows introduce larger birds. The Lanius Miluus — a large kite-like shrike with a deep red cap — perches on a branch in imperious profile, its forked tail and broad wing rendering unmistakable. Beside it, facing right, the Cuculus Guggauch / Kuk Kuck — the common cuckoo — is one of the most striking figures on the plate: a large, imposing bird with a rich crimson breast and barred underparts, shown in the characteristic lateral profile that makes the cuckoo instantly recognisable even at distance. Below, the Buteo Triorches / Bushart Busant — the honey buzzard — is perched open-beaked, its pale cream breast and barred tail rendered in warm browns and cream whites, the beak slightly agape in a posture of alertness. Flanking it, the great cuckoo again commands the right side of the composition with its full-bodied presence.
The lower rows present three smaller raptors: the spotted Accipiter maior (goshawk) on a log, the Miluus Weye (red kite) caught in a stooping pose with wings spread and talons extended — the most dynamically composed figure on the plate — and the compact Accipiter minor (sparrowhawk) perched upright, its pale spotted breast catching the light.
The sheet has been hand coloured throughout, with each bird individually coloured: the crimson caps of the shrikes and kite-shrike, the barred purple-grey of the great grey shrike, the rich crimson breast of the cuckoo, the warm brown and cream of the buzzard, and the blue-grey highlights of the hawks wings all applied with careful attention to species differentiation and preserved in excellent condition.
Good overall condition for age. Please view all images carefully.
Medium: Hand-coloured engraving
Format: Folio leaf
Plate: Tab. XI
Date: 1657
Dimensions: 13.0 × 7.9 inches (33 × 20 cm)
Status: Available
Shrikes, Buzzard, Cuckoo & Hawks (Tab. XI)
From Historia Naturalis de Avibus
Jan Jonston, engraved by Matthäus Merian the Elder Amsterdam: Jan Jansson, 1657
Hand-coloured engraving on folio leaf Engraving printed to recto
This folio engraving, Tab. XI from Jan Jonston's Historia Naturalis de Avibus, presents eight birds across five rows in a composition that ranges from the small but formidable shrikes at the top to the stooping kite and perched hawks at the bottom — a survey of European raptors and their allies that combines scientific rigour with genuine drama.
The plate opens with two shrikes, each standing over a freshly killed mouse — a naturalistic detail that immediately communicates something essential about these small but predatory birds. The Lanius Collorio (red-backed shrike) is shown in crisp profile with its distinctive crimson cap, grey flank, and black-and-white tail, its prey rendered with almost clinical precision beneath its feet. Beside it, the Lanius alius Warckengel (great grey shrike) repeats the composition in a darker, more barred plumage, both birds displaying the butcher-bird habit of prey display that made them objects of fascination for Renaissance naturalists.
The middle rows introduce larger birds. The Lanius Miluus — a large kite-like shrike with a deep red cap — perches on a branch in imperious profile, its forked tail and broad wing rendering unmistakable. Beside it, facing right, the Cuculus Guggauch / Kuk Kuck — the common cuckoo — is one of the most striking figures on the plate: a large, imposing bird with a rich crimson breast and barred underparts, shown in the characteristic lateral profile that makes the cuckoo instantly recognisable even at distance. Below, the Buteo Triorches / Bushart Busant — the honey buzzard — is perched open-beaked, its pale cream breast and barred tail rendered in warm browns and cream whites, the beak slightly agape in a posture of alertness. Flanking it, the great cuckoo again commands the right side of the composition with its full-bodied presence.
The lower rows present three smaller raptors: the spotted Accipiter maior (goshawk) on a log, the Miluus Weye (red kite) caught in a stooping pose with wings spread and talons extended — the most dynamically composed figure on the plate — and the compact Accipiter minor (sparrowhawk) perched upright, its pale spotted breast catching the light.
The sheet has been hand coloured throughout, with each bird individually coloured: the crimson caps of the shrikes and kite-shrike, the barred purple-grey of the great grey shrike, the rich crimson breast of the cuckoo, the warm brown and cream of the buzzard, and the blue-grey highlights of the hawks wings all applied with careful attention to species differentiation and preserved in excellent condition.
Good overall condition for age. Please view all images carefully.
Medium: Hand-coloured engraving
Format: Folio leaf
Plate: Tab. XI
Date: 1657
Dimensions: 13.0 × 7.9 inches (33 × 20 cm)
Status: Available
