Jamaican Mango – Reichenbach Antique Hummingbird Engraving
  • Jamaican Mango – Reichenbach Antique Hummingbird Engraving
  • Jamaican Mango – Reichenbach Antique Hummingbird Engraving
  • Jamaican Mango – Reichenbach Antique Hummingbird Engraving
Jamaican Mango – Reichenbach Antique Hummingbird Engraving
Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango) – Original Hand-Colored Engraving by Ludwig Reichenbach, Antique Print Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango) – Original Hand-Colored Engraving by Ludwig Reichenbach, Antique Print Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango) – Original Hand-Colored Engraving by Ludwig Reichenbach, Antique Print

Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango) – Original Hand-Colored Engraving by Ludwig Reichenbach, Antique Print

€375.00
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Original nineteenth-century hand-colored engraving depicting the Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango), a striking tropical hummingbird illustrated by Ludwig Reichenbach in his celebrated Trochilinarum Enumeratio.

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  Authentic antique prints

Original engravings from the 17th–19th century.

Jamaican Mango and Papaya Blossom: Tropical Grace and Emerald Light

This original nineteenth-century hand-colored engraving depicts the Jamaican Mango (Anthracothorax mango), a striking tropical hummingbird illustrated by Ludwig Reichenbach in his celebrated Trochilinarum Enumeratio. The plate combines careful natural history observation with a refined decorative composition.

Three hummingbirds are arranged around the pale flower of Carica papaya, their emerald plumage and warm coppery tones creating a graceful sense of movement. The result is an elegant composition in which scientific illustration, botanical observation and ornamental beauty meet with remarkable balance.

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Visual Analysis

This plate stands out for its warm, harmonious palette. The birds’ deep green plumage is enriched by copper and bronze tones, while the large pale papaya blossom provides a soft visual anchor within the composition. The three figures create a natural rhythm: two birds are shown perched above, while a third appears in flight below.

The engraving has a quietly decorative character, less dramatic than some of the ruby or sapphire plates, but exceptionally refined. Its balance of foliage, flower and bird movement makes it particularly suitable for studies, libraries, refined living rooms and curated natural history walls.

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About the Species

Anthracothorax mango, commonly known as the Jamaican Mango, is one of the classic tropical hummingbirds recorded in nineteenth-century ornithology. Reichenbach listed the species across a broad geographical range, including the Antilles, Brazil, Paraguay, British Guiana, Mexico, New Granada and East Florida.

The species was admired for its iridescent green plumage, warm underparts and elegant form. In this engraving, Reichenbach presents the bird in multiple poses, transforming taxonomic observation into a composition of movement, colour and tropical grace.

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The Botanical Setting

Reichenbach associated this plate with Carica papaya, the papaya plant, whose pale blossom forms an important visual element in the composition. This botanical reference adds a valuable natural history dimension, connecting the hummingbirds to the flowering plants of the tropical environments they inhabit.

The papaya blossom gives the engraving a distinctive character: softer and more intimate than a purely ornamental flower, yet immediately evocative of warm tropical landscapes. Its presence reinforces the ecological relationship between hummingbirds and nectar-bearing plants, while adding depth to the decorative reading of the plate.

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Heritage Stories

This engraving belongs to Ludwig Reichenbach’s remarkable world of hummingbirds, where Victorian scientific curiosity meets extraordinary visual elegance. Explore the story behind Trochilinarum Enumeratio and discover why these original hummingbird engravings remain so compelling today.

Ludwig Reichenbach and the Art of Hummingbirds →

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Condition Report

Very Good condition. Original nineteenth-century paper with strong hand-colouring, generous margins and a well-preserved impression. Visible plate mark consistent with period intaglio printing. Minor age-related marks may be present, fully consistent with authenticity and historical character.

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Details

Species: Anthracothorax mango
Common name: Jamaican Mango
Work: Trochilinarum Enumeratio
Author: Ludwig Reichenbach
Date: c. 1855–1860
Technique: Original hand-colored engraving
Plate: DCCXC (790)
Reference number: 4839–41
Associated plant: Carica papaya
Inscription: ad naturam (“drawn from life”)
Origin noted by Reichenbach: Antilles, Brazil, Paraguay, British Guiana, Mexico, New Granada, East Florida
Sheet size: approx. 28.5 × 22.5 cm

U1K
1 Item

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