London, Edward Orme, 1809-1810. Oblong folio (22.9 x 29.4 cm). 53 fine, detailed, and lively etchings. Near contemporary grained half calf over marbled boards. Gilt title and ornaments on the spine. Marbled endpapers. Top edge gilt.

A fine suite of charming etchings by the well-known English artist Samuel Howitt (1756-1822), who is perhaps best known for his illustrations for Oriental Field Sports (1807). Wild and domestic animals, as well as hunting, horse-racing and landscape scenes were his speciality, as shown in this album. Especially dogs, horses, foxes, and farm animals figure prominently. Many - but not all - plates are also to be found in his Groups of Animals, Containing Forty-four Plates, Drawn from the Life and Etched (1811). Nearly all are dated (year and month), most are captioned. "Howitt worked both in oils and water-colours, for the most part confining himself to sporting subjects and illustrations of natural history, which were carefully executed, spirited and truthful. These, as Howitt represented in his New Work of Animals, were 'drawn from the life' and published so as to 'assist the pencil of the designer who has not had an opportunity to pay the same attention to this branch of the art'. However, notes in one sketchbook containing watercolours of apes and monkeys indicate that, while some there certainly were viewed in private menageries, others were studies of stuffed specimens from William Bullock’s museum and the British Museum" (Donald). Provenance: armorial bookplate of Edward Nicholas Hurt (1795-1867) Mane predam vesperi spolium, (i.e an early bird catches the worm) on the front pastedown. One, smaller, leaf mounted. Light shelf wear to boards, a few spots (about five plates with more extensive foxing), a few plates with damp stains in the margin corners (from before binding) and one with a short, marginal tear, lower margins with some occasional light thumbing; otherwise a very good, clean copy. Donald, D., Picturing animals in Britain; Nissen ZBI, 2017 [in part].