ATTRIBUTED TO SAMUEL DIXON, CIRCA 1755

Samuel Dixon's first 'Sett of curious Foreign Bird Pieces' was prepared in 1749 and advertised in Faulkner's Dublin Journal on 4 April that year. Sets of twelve portrait depictions of single birds were probably first offered for sale in the summer of 1750, in black and gilt-japanned frames. The subject matter derived from George Edward's Natural History of Uncommon Birds, published 1743-51 and the descriptions were also drawn directly from Edwards' works.