Hooping [sic] Crane. Grus americana. Adult Male.

John James Audubon (1785-1851)

Date

1834
Object Type

Prints
Medium

Aquatint and engraving with applied watercolor
Contributors

Engraved by Robert Havell Jr.

Printed by Robert Havell Jr.

Hand colored by Robert Havell Jr.
Dimensions

Image: 38 1/8 x 25 7/16 in.
Sheet: 38 1/8 x 25 7/16 in.
Inscriptions

Recto:
u.l.: No. 46
u.r.: PLATE CCXXVI.
l.l.: Drawn from Nature by J. J. Audubon F.R.S F.L.S.
l.c.: Hooping [sic] Crane GRUS AMERICANA. Adult Male.
l.r.: Engraved Printed & Coloured by R. Havell 1834.
Credit Line

Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas
Accession Number

1965.163
Copyright

Public domain

After a series of failures as a merchant in Kentucky, Audubon embarked on his most ambitious project to date: The Birds of America (1827–38), a lavish, large-scale folio of color prints of birds native to North America, all rendered life-size and accompanied by descriptive essays. Traveling across the present-day United States, he hunted and killed thousands of birds, posing their bodies for watercolor paintings that communicated key aspects of their appearance and behavior. These watercolors subsequently became the basis of 435 hand-colored engravings, which Audubon marketed to wealthy subscribers in America and Europe.

The Carter’s collection includes 22 engravings from Birds of America, as well as bound volumes of a smaller octavo edition and a complete set of prints from Audubon’s subsequent project, The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America (1845–48).

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023).

Caught on Paper

September 23, 2017–February 11, 2018

Inspired by the coinciding exhibition Wild Spaces, Open Seasons, this exhibition of works on paper from the Carter’s collection explores the popular outdoor subjects that have permeated American culture and captivated American artists for centuries.
The Perilous Texas Adventures of Mark Dion

February 8–July 5, 2020

Part explorer, part historian, and part naturalist, artist Mark Dion retraces the footsteps of several 19th-century Texas explorers, collecting materials to form an exhibition that enhances our understanding of the past and brings it to life in the present day.

Location: Off view

See more by John James Audubon

Educator Resources

Grades 2–4

Beasts, Birds, and Bugs: The Art of Scientific Observation (Interactive)

Investigate the ways artists have used scientific observation to represent the world around them. Students will practice their scientific skills while closely studying the creatures and habitats depicted in artworks.

Learn more and register by visiting Connect2Texas and filter for “Amon Carter Museum of American Art.” If you have questions, contact us by email or call 817.989.5011.

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