A hand coloured antique print entitled Le Toulou also known as the Coucou de Madagascar
From ‘Histoire Naturelle Des Oiseaux’ by George-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon.
Published by L’Imprimerie Royale, Paris between 1770 and 1786.
Engraved by Haussard.
36 volumes of Histoire Naturelle were published during the author’s lifetime with a further eight being produced after his death by Leclerc’s friend Bernard Germain de Lacépède.
Born a man of modest circumstance George-Louis Leclerc secured a massive inheritance from his godfather. With this he travelled to Paris where, after some study, he earned a position as Head of Le Jardin du Roi, a major botanical garden in the city. Here he started his studies of plants and animals in earnest, collecting vast numbers of botanical and zoological specimens and turning the park into an institute of research.
I cannot find a direst translation for Le Toulou. Nor can I find a similar looking bird that can be described as a Madagascan Cuckoo.
Size: 27 x 19.8 cms or 10 1/2 x 7 3/4 inches.
Size of coloured part of image.19.5 x 15.5 cms or 7 3/4 x 6 inches.
Condition: Near Fine: The coloured part of the image is clean and fresh. The white surround is slightly browned and marked by small dark or black flaws. The paper upon which the engraving is printed is uneven in shape and slightly creased. This was usual for the period of manufacture. There are two white strips of paper affixed to the reverse side. These where probably used to secure it to a mount.
