Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas)

Details

Jacques Barraband (French, 1767/68-1809)
Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas)
signed 'Barraband' (lower right), with numbers '46/ No 46/ 209/ B8'
traces of black chalk, watercolour and bodycolour on paper, fragmentary watermark JW[hatman] 1794
20 ½ x 15.1/7 in. (52 x 38.4 cm.)

Provenance

Marcel Jeanson, his sale, Christie's, Paris, 9 November 2010, lot 15.

Engraved

Levaillant, Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de paradis et des rolliers I, plate 46.

Special notice

Specified lots (sold and unsold) marked with a filled square not collected from Christie’s by 5.00 pm on the day of the sale will, at our option, be removed to Cadogan Tate. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Cadogan Tate Ltd. All collections will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends.

Lot Essay

The greater part of Barraband's oeuvre consists of drawings of carefully observed flowers, insects and birds. His exceptional talent as a draughtsman, combined with scientific accuracy, led him to be employed by Emperor Napoleon and later Empress Joséphine. Barraband's most important achievement was undoubtedly the series of over 300 drawings which he executed for Levaillant's Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de paradis et des rolliers, published in 1806. This well preserved sheet, showing a Green Jay (also known as Peruvian Jay), is a fine example from this group and was part of the famous Natural History collection of Marcel Jeanson (1885-1942), sold at Christie's in 2010.

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