Harpy Eagle, Brazilian Bird Print, Descourtilz, 1944

Harpy eagle print after Descourtilz from the 1944 Ornitologia Brasileira: Estampa 2, a color offset print of Brazilian birds reproducing a painting by Jean-Théodore Descourtilz.

A single large eagle fills the sheet, shown in profile on a rocky perch. The head is pale gray with a double crest of dark feathers raised at the nape, the bill black and heavily hooked, the eye rendered a warm amber. The breast and belly are left pale, whitening toward pure white on the lower body, while the back and folded wing are covered in a dense scale pattern of dark olive-gray feathers each finely edged in white, giving the upper plumage a mailed, almost armored texture. The closed tail, visible along the lower edge of the plate, is barred in broad alternating bands of gray-brown and cream. The bird grips a weathered gray rock with bright yellow legs and heavy black talons, a small tuft of grass sprouting at the base of the perch; the background is left as plain toned paper, throwing the bird into sharp relief.

The plate comes from the Ornitologia Brasileira ou História Natural das Aves do Brasil, notáveis por sua plumagem, canto e hábitos, issued in 1944 by Livraria Kosmos Editora of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. First published in French in the 1850s, the work appeared here in its first Portuguese edition, translated by Eurico Santos and limited to 1,315 copies, 1,000 plus 315 numbered. Each of its 48 color offset plates is captioned "Estampa" with its number and mounted on a toned card with a printed green ornamental border.

Descourtilz, a French painter and naturalist who lived from circa 1796 to 1855, traveled to Brazil in the late 1820s and devoted himself to painting its birds. His first work on the birds of Brazil appeared in 1834.

This harpy eagle print after Descourtilz is decorative and strong in color, and works well framed on its own in a study or hallway or hung with other Brazilian bird prints from the same volume.

This plate is in good condition for its age. The mount shows ordinary age toning, with a few small spots and light wear to the edges; there is a tiny mark near the upper edge of the image panel. Please review the images for further condition details.