Title
La Bernache
Alternative Title
La Bernache. [Plate] 855
Contributor
Martinet, François Nicolas, 1731- (Artist, Engraver)
Publisher
Paris : L'Imprimerie Royal
Date created
[ca. 1770-1786]
Type of resource
Still image
Genre
Engravings (prints)
Format
Image
Digital origin
reformatted digital
Abstract/Description
François Nicolas Martinet (1725-1804), a French artist living during the late Enlightenment Era, blends science with art in his numerous works.
His passion for ornithology led him to collaborate with several notable natural historians, including Georges-Louis Leclerc, Count of Buffon.
Martinet created a total of one thousand eight prints for Buffon's extensive Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux, from which the plates in this collection derive.
Depicting birds in their natural habitats, the plates began as copperplate engravings and later received color from an unknown colorist, possibly Martinet himself.
These avian prints emphasize scientific accuracy and natural beauty.
A barnacle goose dominates Martinet's La Bernache. Printed c. 1770- 1786, La Bernache was intended to be plate eight hundred fifty-five of Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux. Martinet employs hatching to distinguish soft feathers from webbed feet. He captures the wide stance of the goose, suggesting that he worked from life. To maximize accuracy, Martinet includes an element of the goose's preferred territory- grass- along with a measured bar delineating the scale of the figure.
A barnacle goose dominates Martinet's La Bernache. Printed c. 1770- 1786, La Bernache was intended to be plate eight hundred fifty-five of Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux. Martinet employs hatching to distinguish soft feathers from webbed feet. He captures the wide stance of the goose, suggesting that he worked from life. To maximize accuracy, Martinet includes an element of the goose's preferred territory- grass- along with a measured bar delineating the scale of the figure.
Related item
Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux
Avian Life Prints
Avian Life Prints
Subjects and keywords
Bernache
Branta leucopsis
Barnacle goose
Branta
Waterfowl
Birds
Animals
Branta leucopsis
Barnacle goose
Branta
Waterfowl
Birds
Animals
Identifier
bird_martinet_005
Permanent URL
Location
Northeastern University Library
Use and reproduction
No Copyright. The organization that has made
the Item available believes that the Item is in the Public Domain under the laws of the United
States, but a determination was not made as to its copyright status under the copyright laws
of other countries. The Item may not be in the Public Domain under the laws of other
countries. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more
information. http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/