the attic
There are millions of prints in circulation that depict birds and animals. This is great if you love natural history art, but it also means there is a lot of older-looking stuff out there that people wonder about. Most of the prints about which we get inquiries are NOT valuable -- probably more than 99 percent of past inquiries on Audubon involved Havell Edition reproductions or facsimiles, lovely to look at, but not rare or valuable. In order for you to evaluate a print (that is, to decide if it is an original antique print or a reproduction), you will almost always have to remove the print from any framing so you can examine and describe it completely. If you are scared to remove it from the frame, we suggest you review our authentication tips below, then if you think it is worth it, take it to a frame shop and pay them to remove it. When removing a print from a frame by yourself, do it slowly and use common sense. NEVER FORCE ANYTHING WHEN REMOVING PRINTS FROM EXISTING FRAMES OR MATS -- in some cases, prints will be glued down or taped to backboards. Do not remove tape from prints (cut the tape instead), and never try to remove a glued-down print. If the print is glued to a mat (or vice versa), do not remove the mat. You can almost always gain information by examining other aspects of the print, and you may be able to rule it out (or in) as an original print based on other characteristics. Because natural history prints were generally issued as part of a larger work, they tend to follow certain "standard recipes" that will allow a person who knows the complete recipe to distinguish between an original print and any reproduction. We have yet to run into any type of reproduction that does not vary in at least one aspect from the original it reproduces, but the ease with which these variations can be detected depends both on the specific works in question, and the knowledge and skill of the person making the determination. In our area of expertise, original Audubon prints, we know of a few instances where professionals in the print business disagreed on the authenticity of specific prints. This sort of disagreement is rare. MOST AUDUBON REPRODUCTIONS DO NOT REQUIRE A HIGH LEVEL OF EXPERTISE TO DISTINGUISH THEM FROM ORIGINALS. We offer information in this area that will help you with authentication for both non-Audubon and Audubon prints (originals and reproductions), and with ballpark values if yours turns out to be a facsimile or reproduction (Audubon only). If you have an original natural history print and are interested in discussing a sale, read the information in this area to make sure your print fits the criteria for the prints we seek. If it does, we'd be pleased to hear from you through our item inquiry form (links found below). AUDUBON ORIGINALS We spent many hours trying to put together easy-to-use information to help you authenticate your prints. It turned out to be a complex task, not because authentication is difficult but because the great number and variety of reproductions and facsimiles make definitive declarations (e.g., all prints with a plate mark are authentic) impossible. We have finally settled on a quick guide below that we hope hits the highlights of what you need to know. If you don't understand some of the terms, please visit our help area for more guidance. In the help area, if you need more detailed information on a specific topic, click the key image to get it. QUICK GUIDE TO AUDUBON ORIGINALS
Offer us a print for sale or consighment. AUDUBON REPRODUCTIONS If, after reading the material above, you have decided you have a reproduction or facsimile print, please read this section. There are few reproductions in circulation of Audubon Biens or octavo prints, so the discussion applies primarily to the large Havell folio prints. Reproduction, the way we use it, refers to any print of any size that reproduces the image from an original print. Most Audubon reproduction prints are smaller than the corresponding original print in terms of the image and the paper (sheet) dimensions. Facsimile refers to a subset of reproductions prints, a print that is the same size (both in terms of image and paper size) as the original print it reproduces. We admire many of the collectible Audubon reproductions we have seen, but we make the choice to focus our attention on originals, because we find them more exciting and appreciate their direct link to the past. We have some reproductions for sale from time to time, and we hope you'll take a look at them if you are in the market for these. We can and have done consulting work involving detailed description and appraisal of large reproduction collections, and can do the same for you if that's what you need. We have outstanding research and writing skills, a good command of the market, and will do a great job at a competitive price. That said, only a tiny percentage of the reproduction and facsimile prints in circulation today have collectible value (that is, are perceived by collectors to be worth a premium price). The typical reproduction print has only decorative value (value based on how attractive it is). If you have a reproduction or facsimile print, we cannot help you with valuations, prices or approaches to selling it beyond the information you find here and in Bill Steiner's article on Audubon facsimiles in our study area. We will, however, be happy to sell you Bill's book, a great reference that goes into far more detail on the facsimile and common reproduction series that are in circulation, and provides an interesting discussion on the value of such prints. Most reproductions are smaller in size than the corresponding Audubon original, and are unlikely to command more than nominal prices if described honestly and completely. We think a fair price for prints with reduced-size images range from $1 to roughly $50 depending on size, quality and condition. There are a couple of series of reduced-size reproduction prints issued in the 1930s or 1940s that were hand-colored, and some of these prints may be worth somewhat more than this range. These prints, published by A.P.P (Artistic Picture Publishing) and the History Institute of America, are usually so-marked unless the credits have been trimmed. While not particularly rare, they can be very attractive depending on condition, and might command higher prices. If you are buying or selling non-limited edition reproductions that are NOT hand-colored, we would say that anything in the $25 to $100 range should be in excellent to "as new" condition, and should be a full-sized facsimile of an image with some dramatic punch. In the end, this is just our opinion based on observations of the market, and our own feelings about the inherent value of reproductions. The prints that you see for sale for more than $50/print are usually from one of the handful of collectible limited edition facsimiles of the Havell Edition and the Imperial Folio Edition (that is, full-sized versions of Audubon's folio birds and folio animals). Some of the full-size limited edition reproductions of possible interest to collectors include Princeton Limited (birds and animals), Southart/Parkway (animals), Oppenheimer (birds and animals), Loates (birds), Abbeville (birds), Amsterdam (birds), and Arial/Leipzig (birds) to name a subset. These prints range widely in price and in edition limitation. We have seen some of these prints sell for less than $10 a print in large sets at auction while others command as much as $6000 apiece at retail. Prices do not strictly correlate with quality. Some excellent limited edition facsimile prints can be had at lower to moderate prices, while some prints of lesser quality can command higher prices. If it is a current series, and still being published, prices should be capped by the publisher's list prices. If the series is out of print, price depends primarily on demand from collectors. A few of the more expensive of the limited edition prints are Amsterdams, Abbevilles, and Oppenheimer Editions. Other high quality, but usually less expensive facsimiles are Princeton Edition, Loates, and Arial/Leipzig. Of course, information in the market is not perfect and prices vary widely, occasionally by more than a factor of 10. Remember, even though collectors have embraced some limited edition series, they remain indifferent to others, and what they value today, they may not value tomorrow. BIRD PRINTS BY ARTISTS OTHER THAN AUDUBON We do not buy reproduction or facsimile prints. If you have original hand-colored folio (large) or quarto-sized (medium) prints by artists we target (including Mark Catesby, Alexander Wilson, John Gould, Prideaux John Selby, J. G. Keulemans, and Rex Brasher), we may have some interest, but only if you have already verified that the item is an original hand-colored print, have decided upon an approximate price, and can provide us with a thorough description. For information on determining hand-coloring and to see what prints would be expected to have plate marks, please visit our help page. We are not experts in the markets for artists other than Audubon, and cannot help with valuations, but you can always take a look at our current prices for these artists, learn more about the history of your print, and pick up authentication tips in the process. Finally, please note that determining bird and work of origin for Goulds can be very tricky. At a minimum, we would expect you to provide sheet dimensions, transcribe the names of the artists and printer credited on the print, give the latin name as it appears on the print, provide the common name if available from accompanying text (or if you know it), and give a detailed verbal description of the image (e.g., four hummingbirds in jungle vegetation with orchids). Please also let us know if we can obtain photos. Offer us an authenticated print for sale or consignment. TO OFFER A PRINT FOR SALE OR CONSIGNMENT If you wish to offer prints for sale to us, you must first AUTHENTICATE them. If you are having trouble determining whether or not your print is hand-colored, please realize that hand-coloring means painted with watercolor. Under 10X or greater magnification, the color LOOKS like watercolor paint. Buy yourself a cheap loupe (costs under $10) from a photo supply store and examine your print with the loupe right on top of it. It is generally not useful to use a loupe on a framed print because you cannot get close enough to the print to bring the image into focus. Most of us know from first hand experience what watercolor looks like. USE YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE! Hand colored prints will have spots where the paint goes over or under the black ink lines, places where the colors smudge or overlap, etc. Printed color often -- BUT NOT ALWAYS -- shows a dot or some other type of regular pattern. If it doesn't have dots, but it doesn't look like watercolor, it is probably a different type of PRINTED COLOR. The only exception to this handcoloring rule would be the work of Brasher which involved watercolor applied by air brush through a stencil (pochoir). In this case, under magnification the paint on the typical Brasher original takes the form of tiny droplets. Some Brashers also have touches of hand-applied watercolor (e.g., the red on this Ivory-Billed Woodpecker) but these are fairly unusual. If you would like to contact us with regard to a print you have in your possession, we will need to know
Please fill out our item inquiry form including ALL of this information. We cannot respond to incomplete requests, nor to requests by telephone..
Last updated 07.13.08 |
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