Album with 28 watercolours representing animals, dedicated to Prince Philippe of Belgium.

4to: [28] watercolours enhanced with gum, ms. captions with pen and brown ink, in French, protected by silky paper (sl. browned, some marg. soiling, sm. tears and sm. stains).

Contemp. long-grained red sheepskin, gilt roll and corner tool frame on the boards, gilt lettered dedication in French on the upper board, gilt filleted flat spine, a.e.g. (rubbed, turn-ins missing, joints partly split, bumped corners).

Charming suite of watercolours by an anonymous amateur artist, probably young but talented. She or he has represented animals, essentially birds, exotic or domestic (rooster, crested cardinal, hummingbird, pheasant, green woodpecker, bittern, pigeon, bearded vulture, etc.), a lion, a domestic cat, some plants (Ricinus, apricot tree, etc.), and two picturesque characters ("Indienne de Quito", "Abalino" the Italian bandit).
Prov. Philippe of Belgium (1837-1905), Count of Flanders, brother of King Leopold II and father of King Albert I (supralibros).