THE quality and rarity of the works in the Sotheby’s sale means that they are likely to attract some very high prices.

But collectors of more modest means should not despair: it is entirely possible to build up a library of books about natural history without having to go to the lengths of remortgaging your house.

“The heyday of books about natural history ran from the 16th to the 19th centuries,” says Rupert Powell, the managing director of Bloomsbury

Book Auctions, which will

be holding its next

natural history sale

in June.

“Birds and flowers are the favoured subjects among collectors, simply because they’re so pretty. And the workmanship was very fine: a lot had plates that were individually hand-coloured in each individual volume.”

The most important work of all when it comes to natural history, and, indeed, the second most valuable book in the world after the Guttenberg Bible, is Birds of America, by John James Audubon, which was printed first in Edinburgh and later in London, the last print being made in 1838.

“It is physically enormous,” says Mr Powell. “Many of the pictures are almost lifesize. It is a work in four volumes dating from 1827, and the last copy to come up for auction sold for $8 million.” It was lucky old Sotheby’s, incidentally, who sold that one, too.

But again, that price is exceptional. It is possible to find attractive works for merely tens of pounds, rather than millions, and if you can afford it, very splendid pieces can be purchased for just

over £1,000.

Bloomsbury Book Auctions has a selection of books about bees coming up in June, which start at tens of pounds, and a lovely work called Monograph of the Pittidae, about a family of exotic forest birds, which has a £1,500 to £2,000 estimate.

Dominic Winter Book Auctions, based in Bristol, also sees considerable interest in books about natural history from collectors. “Since the 16th century, new printing techniques made the production of these books much easier, and there has been interest in them ever since,” says Colin Meays, cataloguer and valuer at

the auction house.

“Some really beautiful works can be found at reasonable prices. In the 18th century, there was a very good wood engraver called Thomas Bewick, who produced the General History of the Quadrupeds, and you can find copies of that for £180 to £200.”

Even hand-illustrated books need not be too expensive. Benjamin Maund produced a large number of natural history books in the 1830s, with wonderful hand-coloured illustrations, and these still cost less

than £1,000.