Marc Catesby Etchings Hand-Colored by Thomas Williams (Pair)

Item: Framed Hand-Colored Etchings (Pair)

Title: "The Chatterer" and "Papilio Antilochus" from the portfolio The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands by Marc Catesby (1683-1749, English)

Hand Colored by: Thomas L. Williams (Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia)

Age: Frames, Glass, & Etchings - ca. 1880. Hand coloring was done later, ca. 1940. 

Construction: Hand-colored etchings on paper in Tiger Maple frames with original antique hand rolled glass

Dimensions: 17 1/2" T x 14 1/2" W

Condition: Very good. "The Chatterer" frame has a chip to the bottom right corner. Glass and frames have some scratches and signs of wear consistent with age. Etchings are beautifully colored with no creasing, or damage. Some mild discoloration and fading present. Please see photos. 

Details: This pair of classic botanical etchings are a rare piece of Williamsburg, Virginia and William & Mary history. They were each hand-colored by Thomas L. Williams. 

Williams was the first professionally trained photographer to shoot photographs for Colonial Williamsburg, who hired him after World War II to start their photography section. After nine years at Colonial Williamsburg, Mr. Williams became the photographer for William & Mary, a position he held for 35 years. 

This pair of prints was acquired from a private collection of his items.

Mark Catesby was an English naturalist who studied the flora and fauna of the New World. Between 1729 and 1747, Catesby published Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands, the first published account of the flora and fauna of North America.