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This is a detailed print of a white pelican standing at the edge of dark water, facing the left. The bird's wings are tucked in, and its large pouch rests on its long, thin neck. The pelican has mostly white feathers with some touches of pale yellow and some black feathers on the edges of its wings. There is a tuft of pale-yellow feathers behind its head, and its beak is yellow, with thin, dark veins crisscrossing its pouch. The pelican's feet are light yellow, and it stands on brown ground. In the background is a dark body of water with some dark trees in the distance, and the sky above is dark and cloudy.
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This is a detailed print of a white pelican standing at the edge of dark water, facing the left. The bird's wings are tucked in, and its large pouch rests on its long, thin neck. The pelican has mostly white feathers with some touches of pale yellow and some black feathers on the edges of its wings. There is a tuft of pale-yellow feathers behind its head, and its beak is yellow, with thin, dark veins crisscrossing its pouch. The pelican's feet are light yellow, and it stands on brown ground. In the background is a dark body of water with some dark trees in the distance, and the sky above is dark and cloudy.

National Gallery of Art · Print

American White Pelican

Robert Havell after John James Audubon

Date
1836
Medium
hand-colored engraving and aquatint on Whatman wove paper
Dimensions
image: 89.54 × 60.01 cm (35 1/4 × 23 5/8 in.) plate: 97 x 64.8 cm (38 3/16 x 25 1/2 in.) sheet: 100.4 x 67.6 cm (39 1/2 x 26 5/8 in.)
Classification
Print
Accession number
1945.8.311
Credit line
Gift of Mrs. Walter B. James
Time span
1826 to 1850
Department
CG-W
Original NGA record Wikidata Print information

Portfolio and series

Series
The Birds of America: Plate CCCXI

Subjects and terms

  • American
  • aquatint
  • bird
  • animal
  • engraving
  • Tree
  • Water

NGA object ID 32452. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.