Quadrupeds of North America. New York: V.G. Audubon, 1849-51-54.
31 parts (3 volumes). 8vo (270 x 180 mm). Half-titles for volumes 1 & 3. 155 hand-colored lithographed plates by W.E. Hitchcock and R. Trembly after J.J. and John Wodehouse Audubon. Original buff-colored wrappers printed in black. Part 1 with small circular stain to front wrapper and title, parts 3, 7 & 31 with repair to spines, parts 14 & 17 with worn spines and back wrappers detached, few other backstrips splitting, corner repair to back wrapper of part 31.
Provenance: G.W. Campbell (pencil ownership inscription to part 26); Richard Manney (bookplate to chemise); his sale, Sotheby's New York, Oct 11, 1991.
Exhibited: Grolier Club, 'Essential Parts,' 1996, p 40.

A NEAR PRISTINE COPY OF THIS AUDUBON RARITY, THE OCTAVO EDITION OF QUADRUPEDS IN ORIGINAL PARTS. THE MANNEY COPY. A prospectus is printed on the back wrapper of each part, describing this edition as "a miniature copy of the large edition, with figures and descriptions of the Quadrupeds of the United States (including Texas, California, and Oregon,) part of Mexico, the British and Russian Possessions and Arctic regions of our continent. Each number will contain five plates, lithographed in a superior style and carefully coloured from the original drawings. / The numbers will be delivered to subscribers at intervals of not less than one month, and the work will be completed in thirty numbers." In fact, the completed edition comprises 31 numbers and has five more plates than the first folio edition. The Quadrupeds resulted from Audubon's collaboration with the great naturalist, Reverend John Bachman. Together they describe and depict exotic species such as the bison, wolverine and musk-ox, not commonly known to eastern citizens, as well as common house mice, deer and squirrels. Audubon died in 1851 and had been in ill health for some time and the Quadrupeds fell under the guidance of his sons, John Woodhouse and Victor Gifford. John W. prepared about half of the drawings and Victor was the publisher. Both sons had married daughters of John Bachman in the 1830s and Bachman designated all profits from sales of this work to his sons-in-law. Each part-issue of the octavo was sold for "one dollar, payable on delivery" (Prospectus). Nissen ZBI 163; Sabin 2638.