New York: Published by the Author, 1869. In two volumes. Folio (608 x 475 mm). Letterpress list of subscribers, 12 leaves with woodcut engravings by W. J. Linton, printed separately and pasted in. Seventy-two lithographed plates with hand-coloring, all but one by Bowen & Co. of Philadelphia (plate 47 lithographed by Elliot and Wolf and printed by McLellan in New York), all after drawings by D. G. Elliot and Joseph Wolf. (Title-pages and a few text leaves creased, a few plates and text leaves starting in Vol. II, perforated stamp in margin of approximately two plates, Brachyrhampus Hypoleucus plate disbound with marginal chipping, a few marginal tears with a few repairs to several text leaves, a few plates with light marginal chipping). Modern half green morocco, marbled boards, spines gilt. With the book-plates and perforated stamps of the Spokane Public Library. Anker 129; Ayer/Zimmer p. 205; Fine Bird Books p. 74; Nissen IVB 294; Sabin 22227.

First edition, one of only 200 copies printed.

"Since the time of Wilson and Audubon, no work has been published upon American Ornithology, containing life-size representations of the various species that have been discovered since the labors of those great men were finished" (from the Preface). Nearly all of the species are illustrated life-size and Joseph Wolf's depiction of the falco islandicus has become one of the icons of ornithological illustration. Among the final works completed by the printing firm Bowen in Philadelphia, as they went out of business soon after this was published, and Elliot had the rest of his works produced in Europe.