Audubon Aquatint, Small Green Crested Flycatcher

AUDUBON, John James (1785 - 1851).
Small Green Crested Flycatcher, Plate 144.
Aquatint engraving with original hand color.
London: Robert Havell, 1827-1838.
39 1/2" x 26 7/8" sheet.

Comparables: Arader Galleries, 2023 - $2,850; Christie's, 2001 - $2,820.

Provenance: John Vickers Painter's Deckled Collection, with full uncut margins.

"It is a usual inhabitant of the most gloomy and secluded parts of our deep woods, although now and then a pair may be found to have taken possession of a large orchard near the house of the farmer. Almost as pugnacious as the King-bird, it is seen giving chase to every intruder upon its premises, not only during the season of its loves, but during its whole stay with us. As soon as it has paired, it becomes so retired that it seldom goes farther from its nest than is necessary for procuring food." - (Audubon's Ornithological Biography, 1831).