The Turacos

The Turacos


An extremely rare publication of the Royal Zoological Society “Natura Artis Magistra”, now in e-book format.

The monograph ‘The Turacos’ is undoubtely the most splended work ever issued by ‘Artis’ and it ranks among the finest bird books ever published. In this elephant folio (format 57 x 72 cm), all bird species of Musophagidae (banana eaters) known at the time were described and depicted life-size.

Although Gerard Frederik Westerman (1807-1890), one of the founders and later director of ‘Artis’, is mentioned on the title page, it was Hermann Schlegel (1804-1884) who was responsible for the largest part of the text and all the plates. Schlegel drew the birds directly on the stone that was later used for printing the plates, thereby doing honour to the Society’s device (‘nature is the mistress of art’).

While dedicated to the patron of ‘Artis’, His Majesty The King, the original edition was very limited. The books were never for sale but were especially intended as presentation tributes to those who had deserved well of the Royal Zoological Society in particular and zoological science in general.

At present, hand-coloured copies are placed for auction only, rarely, often fetching sums of more than ten thousand pounds.

The Artis Library, University of Amsterdam, is proud of this work and pleased to make it accessible in this way to the general public.


Florence F.J.M. Pieters M. Sc., conservator

Artis Library, University of Amsterdam.