Fork-Tailed Blue-Vented Bee-Eater, Plate 10 from Birds of Western Africa
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Hamill and Barker
Accession Number
1961-105-168
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
William Home Lizars, a Scottish engraver and painter active in the early nineteenth century, produced this detailed print of the Fork-Tailed Blue-Vented Bee-Eater in 1837. Appearing as Plate 10 in the volume *Birds of Western Africa*, the work exemplifies the period’s growing interest in natural history illustration, when artists and publishers collaborated to document species from newly explored regions for both scientific and popular audiences. As a print, the image allowed wide distribution of accurate bird depictions at a time when travel to Western Africa remained limited for most Europeans. Lizars’s contributions to such publications helped bridge art and science, turning private studies into accessible educational resources that shaped public understanding of global biodiversity. Now part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection through the generosity of Hamill and Barker, this plate continues to highlight the enduring appeal of ornithological art and its role in preserving visual records of the natural world.