Top Audubon 1st Edition Octavo Bird
Prints
by Ron Flynn
Of all original Audubon prints, the 1st edition
octavo bird prints are the most popular and widely collected. When the
collector has a choice among many octavo bird editions, most prefer to own
prints from the 1st edition, rather than later editions. This is analogous
to collecting old or rare books. With 500 different bird species in the
octavo editions, it would seem there would be something of interest for any
collector.
However, even with 500 different bird prints to
choose from, they are by no means priced equally in the marketplace. In
every set of 500, there is only one print of each bird species. It is
estimated that a little more than 1100 1st edition sets were issued. The
overall rarity of the edition, and its individual prints, is not great. Many
of the 500 different prints retail for $100.00 or less. On the other hand, a
few of the individual prints retail for nearly $4000.00 each.
It is the attractiveness of the bird species itself
and its overall popularity that accounts for the wide differences in prices
among the 500 prints. Birds like the Robin, Bluebird, and Cardinal (just to
name a few) are attractive and well known all over the country. There are
birds with strong regional popularity like the Flamingo, Pelicans, Herons
and Cranes. On the other hand, birds such as the Sooty Tern and Black Tern
aren't all that attractive or popular, and prices for their prints are very
low.
Dealers and advanced collectors refer to the prices
for various prints and/or the individual prints themselves as being in
different "tiers". Think of "tiers" as meaning price groups. The most
popular prints of the 500, because of supply and demand, will have the
highest prices. The most popular or highest priced prints are called “upper
tier”. The least popular and least expensive prints of the 500 are called
“lower tier”. Yes, there are prints that fall in between, but they are not
important for this discussion. There are no set standard dollar amounts that
divide or define various price groups or tiers. A simple example might be
that all prints priced at around $1000.00 or more would be called upper
tier. Prints priced below around $250.00 would definitely be called lower
tier.
Dealers’ prices for individual prints will vary
widely across the country, due to factors such as: print condition, dealer
overhead and markup, as well as regional demand. It is not that important to
dwell on the different tiers and their price structure. However, do remember
upper tier and lower tier. Upper tier prints are popular and higher priced,
but demand is also high, and they sell quickly. Lower tier prints aren't so
popular and their prices are low, so demand is also low and a dealer may
have them in inventory for 4-5 years or more before they sell. Some would
classify the upper tier prints as fine art prints, but call the lower tier
prints as merely collectibles.
In the table below, I have listed and ranked the top
50 1st edition octavo bird prints based on popularity, supply and demand and
ultimately retail price. From my surveys and tracking of dealers’ retail
prices, these 50 prints have minimum retail prices of $1000.00 or more, and
all would be called upper tier prints. Thus, only 10% of the 500 prints in
the set would be upper tier. There are only another 30 or so prints with
minimum retail prices between $500.00 and $1000.00. What is extremely
important to note is that well over 400, of the total 500 different prints,
would be considered lower tier prints. For collectors, this means that the
vast majority of original 1st edition Audubon octavo bird prints are still
affordable and collectible. However, if you ever decide to sell any of your
Audubon 1st edition octavo bird prints, you are likely to hear
from dealers that “I’m only interested in buying upper tier prints, and I
don’t want to see any lower tier prints.” Retail prices will rise and fall
over the years, but the prints listed below will likely always be upper
tier.
