Top Audubon Amsterdam Edition Prints
by Ron Flynn
The 1971-72 Audubon Amsterdam Edition was the
first complete reproduction of John James Audubon’s original (1826-38)
Birds of America Havell Edition. The (1858-60) Bien Edition was to be
the first complete reproduction, but was never completed, mostly due to
the outbreak of our Civil War. The 1985 Abbeville Edition also reproduced
all of the prints in the original Havell Edition. Finally, the Audubon
Centennial Edition (2005-06) is in production, and will be the 3rd
complete reproduction edition.The Amsterdam Edition consists of 435 full
double elephant folio (DEF) sized facsimile reproductions of the entire
Havell Edition. They were produced using color offset lithography, and
printed on a watermarked 100% cotton rag acid-free paper. Only 250
complete sets of this limited edition were produced.
Because of the limited number (250) for each
print, and the fact that the Amsterdams were the 1st complete
reproduction edition, they are very popular and highly collectible.
Initially, when these sets were first offered for sale, dealers bought the
vast majority of them. In recent years dealers have been selling off
individual prints, from these sets, so that at times the market seems
flooded with them. They are also sold on eBay in large numbers. In
2005-2006, retail prices for these prints actually declined from previous
years. As long as there is an oversupply, prices will remain low.
Well over 300 of the 435 different prints have
retail prices in the $50-$250 range, and generally sell for considerably
lower than that on eBay. These “lower tier” prints (for a brief discussion
and explanation of “tiers”, see my article, Top Audubon 1st
Edition Octavo Bird Prints, on this website), are affordable and quite
collectible. However, they have little chance of significant price
appreciation in coming years.
Only a few of the 435 different prints are popular
enough to create high demand and the highest prices. These “upper tier”
prints are listed in the table below. The 29 prints have retail prices of
around $1000.00 or more, and if any Amsterdam prints have a chance of
price appreciation, these would.
