Isn’t this game fowl striking with his bright yellow-orange feathers? He stands tall as if guarding his hen from any and all intruders. His body feathers are mostly black with some shades of grey and greenish tail feathers. Isn’t his tail just graceful and lovely too?
If they hadn’t been drawn together, I would have never thought that these two chickens were even of the same breed. Her back feathers are white with large brown spots and her belly is covered in shades of brown. She doesn’t seem to have any of the golden orange or green coloring about her. The pair are pictured in a barnyard or in front of a house.
This colored book plate is one of several from a book that dates back over 160 years. The copy I’m working with was actually the eight edition – it must have been highly successful to see so many reprints. The author writes in an engaging style as if he was having a conversation with you; which probably contributed to some of that success. John Lawrence (1753-1839) had actually died 3 years before this release, so, perhaps blaming him for not identifying the illustrator who provided this colorful game fowl drawing would be unfair.
This image is copyright free and in the public domain anywhere that extends copyrights 70 years after death or at least 120 years after publication when the original illustrator is unknown.
