THORBURN, Archibald (1860-1935)
10.12.2025 12:00UTC +00:00
Classic
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CHRISTIE'S| Auctioneer | CHRISTIE'S |
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| Event location | United Kingdom, London |
| Buyer Premium | see on Website% |
ID 1514517
Lot 99 | THORBURN, Archibald (1860-1935)
Estimate value
4000GBP £ 4 000 – 5 000
Birds of prey. London: W.F. Embleton, 1919.
One of only 150 sets of fine colour plates of birds of prey that were not used in any other of Thorburn’s publications. As an ornithological artist, Archibald Thorburn falls between the genres of Victorian sporting artists and 20th century wildlife painters. He has been described as: ‘The master of every aspect of animal art, Thorburn has never been surpassed in the delineation of feathers, conveying the softness of their texture and the delicacy of their markings with a skill which has been the despair of bird artists ever since’ (S. Peter Dance, The Art of Natural History). ‘He painted his subjects outside in their natural surroundings, creating realistic images, … indicative of the struggle for survival’ (Christine Jackson, Dictionary of Bird Artists of the World).
Folio (356 x 250mm). One of 150 sets, 12 colour plates on card, each signed in pencil by Thorburn and numbered in pencil with Fine Art Trade Guild blind-stamps (first plate with extremely faint soiling confined to the margins, else a fine set). Contained in the original green-brown card portfolio (extremities lightly rubbed, spine defective). Provenance: ?'CMM' (ink initials to upper flap perhaps indicating allocation or ownership).
| Place of origin: | Northern Europe, Europe, United Kingdom |
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| Auction house category: | Books and manuscripts, Printed books |
| Place of origin: | Northern Europe, Europe, United Kingdom |
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| Auction house category: | Books and manuscripts, Printed books |
| Address of auction |
CHRISTIE'S 8 King Street, St. James's SW1Y 6QT London United Kingdom | |
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| Phone | +44 (0)20 7839 9060 | |
| Buyer Premium | see on Website | |
| Conditions of purchase | Conditions of purchase |




