Tegetmeier - Pigeons - 1868

A richly illustrated standard work of Victorian ornithology that combines scientific accuracy, cultural-historical insights, and collector’s quality in an impressive volume.

First edition. Publisher: London, George Routledge and Sons, 1868. 190 pages with 16 chromolithographs and 25 black-and-white engravings. Original publisher's binding, with gilt edges, 28 × 19 cm.
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A significant 19th-century ornithological work on the breeding, varieties, and natural history of pigeons, written by the renowned naturalist W. B. Tegetmeier and furnished with numerous, highly detailed coloured plates after drawings by Harrison Weir. The work combines scientific descriptions of anatomy, behavior, and flight mechanics with practical guidance on keeping and breeding, as well as a systematic account of the most important pigeon breeds in Europe.

Of special note are the finely executed color lithographs, which document, with high clarity, different varieties – among others Pouter, Carrier, Jacobiner, Nuns and other breeding strains – and at the same time make the book an aesthetically and scientifically appealing collector's item. The combination of natural-history precision, historical breeding knowledge, and illustrative quality makes the volume an important source for ornithologists, cultural historians, and lovers of historical portrayals of animals.
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Binding somewhat rubbed and slightly damaged, partly faintly brown-spotted, overall a good copy with authentic age patina.