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Auction sale reference

Mark Catesby - OLD WIFE FISH T22, ENGRAVING

Sold for $300 at Litchfield Auctions on May 13, 2026.

Mark Catesby - OLD WIFE FISH T22, ENGRAVING auction lot image

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Lot description

Mark Catesby (British/American, 1683-1749) "Guaperva" (The Old Wife Fish), Plate T22, monogrammed in the plate MC, from the third edition of 1771-1810. Included is the original sheet of text from the folio describing The Old Wife Fish. Already cut in half when the folio was acquired by the present owner. A hand-colored copper plate engraving from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands" - one of the most famous original color-plate books illustrating American plant and animal life forms created during the colonial period of America. Catesby's work is considered by many as the most significant work of American natural history prior to Audubon's "Birds of America". Note: This collection of Catesby engravings came to the present owner in a cardboard sleeve approximately 50 years ago. These prints have not been exposed to light until recently matted.

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