London, the Trustees of the British Museum, 1890. 8vo (22.1 x 14.4 cm). xv, 598, 8 pp.; 15 chromolithographed plates by Peter Smit. Original blind stamped cloth with gilt title on the spine.

A splendid copy of a rare part of a large series, but the only volume dealing with the woodpeckers. With fine chromolithographed plates by Pierre "Peter" Smit, son of the famous Dutch natural history artist Joseph Smit (1836-1929), and an accomplished natural history illustrator himself. "Pierre's woodpeckers have rather clearer lines than the birds drawn by his father, and they are shown in livelier attitudes" (Jackson). Edward Hargitt (1835-1895) was a Scottish ornithologist. "[He] studied art in the Royal Scottish Academy and was a fairly good painter of landscapes. These paintings yield high prices today, auctioned at Christie's. He became also an ornithologist and developed into an expert on woodpeckers. ... During later years, he prepared 1300 drawings of woodpeckers for a proposed monograph" (Wikipedia). This monograph, however, was never published. Printed notice bound in. Notice and title toned, British Museum Board Room and date stamp [16 Aug. (18)90; perhaps the true date of publication], on the title; Board Room stamp also in the lower margin of last index page, otherwise an impeccable, clean copy. C. E. Jackson (1975) Bird illustrators, p. 81; Nissen IVB, 175; Zimmer, pp. 95-98; 838.