A selection of first edition and second edition Audubon octavo quadruped prints, from John James Audubon's Quadrupeds of North America. The first edition, overseen by Audubon's sons, Victor Gifford Audubon and John Woodhouse Audubon, was published between 1849 and 1854, in three volumes. Publication of Volume 1 of the second edition was begun in 1854, the year of the publication of the final volume of the first edition. Hence, it is possible to see both first and second edition prints dated 1854. All the prints, created by stone lithography, have original watercolor paint applied by hand. Virtually all Quadruped plates have a printed background color or tint, but the subject matter is always handpainted. The Quadrupeds may be less well-known than The Birds of America, but it is, nontheless, an equally stunning visual achievement. Most of the plates were printed by J.T. Bowen of Philadelphia, with the remainder by Nagel and Weingaertner of New York.