Le Momot Oranroux, Male

Location

Country: Argentina
City: Buenos Aires
Place: British Embassy

This hand-coloured print shows ‘Le Momot Oranroux’, a momot (a tropical American bird with green-blue plumage). The print was published as an illustration to the first of three volumes of the French ornithological book ‘Histoire Naturelle des Promérops, et des Guêpiers’ (1807).

‘Le Momot Oranroux’ is reproduced in a supplement to the volume, which includes ‘Different Categories of Bird to those described in the first two volumes’.

Auguste Pelletier was a French illustrator, based in London. He painted birds, fruit and occasionally landscapes. He exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Old Water Colour Society and the Royal Watercolour Society. Of his Royal Academy exhibits, 22 were of birds, mostly foreign species, some of which he acquired from the ornithologist, taxidermist and dealer in natural history specimens Benjamin Leaderbeater. He was commissioned by French ornithologist François Levaillant to produce illustrations for ‘Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux de Paradis’ (Paris, 1801-06) and ‘Histoire Naturelle des Promérops et des Guépiers’ (Paris, 1806-07). He also illustrated Thomas Horsfield's ‘Zoological Researches in Java and the neighboring islands’ (1821-24).

Places

Subjects

bird, motmot

Materials & Techniques

engraving, coloured engraving

Artist

Auguste Pelletier ( - 1847)
Guyard

Title

Le Momot Oranroux, Male

Date

published 1806-1807

Medium

Coloured engraving

Acquisition

Purchased from F B Daniell, September 1951

GAC number

1362