Hooded Merganser

John James Audubon’s Birds of America

Princeton Audubon Double Elephant Edition of 1500.

What is a double elephant?

26 1/4 x 39 1/4; Condition: Mint

Nature is never out of style, so ... Feather your nest!

Thank you for visiting Princeton Audubon! 

“Of all the full-size facsimiles of Audubon's prints, those from Princeton Audubon Ltd. come the closest in appearance and quality to the originals. Combining this with their very reasonable cost makes Princeton Audubon facsimiles winners for those looking to acquire some of the most dramatic American natural history images ever produced." - Chris Lane, Philadelphia Print Shop West, appraiser on Antiques Roadshow.

Of our prints, William Steiner, author of Audubon Prints: A Collector’s Guide To Every Edition wrote, “True prints, true colors, incredible detail. Princetons are simply the finest Audubon facsimiles ever made!”

We purchased the actual antique originals in order to accurately produce this award-winning edition, giving you a connection to Audubon’s original work. Read more ...

In order to create this spectacular print, we needed to purchase the actual original. Measuring more than two feet by three feet, the birds are the same size as in life.

Princetons began with the purchase of the actual originals which were physically used in the production process. A giant camera with film the same size as the print took a direct-capture picture of the original, and this exact image was transferred directly to the metal printing plates. There are no other Audubon facsimiles which match the quality of Princeton prints.

Our prints have this embossed seal at the lower right of the paper ...

... and are pencil-numbered in the lower left under the printed script.

Here are the printing specifications ...

Princeton Audubon Double Elephant Edition •Double elephant (life size - 26 1/4 x 39 1/4) •Limited edition of 1500. •Pencil-numbered and embossed with the Princeton Audubon Limited seal. •Up to 11 color plates used. •Specially developed fade-proof inks. Absolute color fidelity to the actual original. •Printed on a 300 line. •Very heavy archival paper which is recommended by the Library of Congress for archives and is specially toned to match the actual color of the antique originals. •Registered to purchaser. •As permanently displayed at The Royal Society of London, to which Audubon belonged as a Fellow.

About the image itself ...

Based on a composition painted in New Orleans in 1821.  Of the male, at left, Audubon wrote:  "Its broad and rounded crest of pure white, with an edging of jetty black, and which it closes or spreads out at pleasure, renders the male of this species conspicuous on the waters to which it resorts.  The activity of its motions, the rapidity of its flight, and its other habits, contribute to render it a pleasing object to the student of nature..."
Edward Howe Forbush considered the hooded merganser the most beautiful of its family. He wrote:  "Vivacious, active, elegant in form, graceful in carriage, its presence adds a peculiar charm to the little ponds and streams on which it delights to disport...One who has seen a small flock of this species placing on the dark waters of a tiny shaded pool with two or three beautiful males darting about among the others, opening and closing their fan-like crests and throwing the sparkling drops in showers over their glistening plumage, will rarely find anywhere a finer and more animated picture of bird life."