Art Gallery - Shaw

Virginian Flying Squirrel General Zoology or Systematic Natural History Vol 2, Part 1. Mammalia by George Shaw. Publ by G. Kearsley, London. 1801                          Another wonderfully clean and detailed nature set from the year 1801; Of English origin the noted G. Kearsley of Fleet Street. Displaying two similar yet unique engravings here. The left engraved plate entitled "Common Flying Squirrel", the right "Virginian Flying Squirrel" both by the artist Heath. The aforementioned rarer Virginian flying squirrel shows a little more detail and concern to accuracy, although both plates are well shaded and detailed. It shows the rodentia in a non active (non-flying) state, whereas the other non-regionally identified plate shows the animal fully stretched as it would have lept from branch to branch. Flying squirrels are found in several regions of the world, thus making it impossible to determine the true character of the left hand plate. As a note of rarity though, although settlement in Virginia had been a fact for some time by 1800, there were still very few works done this early on specific American species. The work had really just begun not too long before. The date of publication and publisher information is located at the bottom of each plate, they read "1801 Jan. 1, London. Published by G. Kearsley Fleet Street", "1801 Jan. 1, London. Published by G. Kearsley Fleet Street." respectively.