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Archival description
James Forbes Zoological Drawings With digital objects
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Upupa Epops

Item consists of a colour illustration of a hoopoe poised on a Kamala orange branch next to a butterfly in flight, with identification, description, and two lines of verse written in pen in contemporary hand: Upupua Epops, Buff. Hodod, Hind. A beautiful variety of the Indian Sultana; On the Comlah, or Chinese Orange, from Aurung-abad. Drawn 1767. Copied 1811.

Baskets, which golden Comlahs held,/
Like Topazes with Amrit* swell'd.

(*Nectar)

Two black birds perched on a fruit tree branch

Item consists of a colour illustration featuring two darkly coloured birds, with black heads and tails and lighter chests, perched on a branch of a fruit tree, possibly a plum tree. A bee is poised on the fruit. No caption. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet.

Two birds on a branch

Item consists of partially coloured illustration featuring two birds perched on a branch, possibly of a plum tree. One bird has a white body with black wings and lighter head, second bird is brown with white throat and black markings on head. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet with background details pencilled in.

The Nest of the Bottle Sparrow

Item consists of a colour drawing of a sparrow poised on a gum arabic tree branch next to a butterfly (eggfly or blue moon butterfly) in flight, with identification and description in pen in contemporary hand: "The Nest of the Bottle Sparrow on a Branch of the Baubul Tree with the Purpled Eyed Butterfly." Additional later pencil notes provide additional identification for the butterfly, "Hypolimnas bolina Linn [India])," and indicate that the image corresponds to Forbes's Oriental Memoirs, 1813, volume 1, page 48. Also contains additional annotations by Henry Mousley with citations and speculation as to the origin of the butterfly (New Zealand).

Swans and duck

Item cosists of a black and white illustration featuring two swans and one duck against an unfinished background of a pond. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet with background details pencilled in.

Small bird on a branch

Item consists of a colour illustration of a small green bird with a white head, perched on a branch with flowers. No caption. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet.

Seagull on a rock

Item consists of a colour illustration of a seagull against a partial landscape of a rock and plants. No caption. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet.

Scorpion

Item consists of leaf with engraved illustration of scorpion pasted on. Background details are drawn in in pencil, with branch coloured in. Later caption in Casey Woods's hand reads: "The drawing in this portfolio are probably those made to illustrate Forbes' 'Oriental Memoirs'."

Red-crested cardinal

Item consists of colour illustration of a red-crested cardinal (Brazilian cardinal) perched on a branch with white and pink blossoms, alongside pale coloured butterfly. Figures have been cut out and pasted on sheet with background details pencilled in.

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