A price list of birds collected by Alfred Russel Wallace inserted in The Ibis of 1863

Abstract

Vol. 5 of The Ibis (1863) contained four loose inserts advertising specimens for sale by the natural history dealer Samuel Stevens. One of these represents the remaining stock of birds obtained by Alfred Russel Wallace during his expedition to the Malay Archipelago in 1854-62. A total of 246 specimens from eight regions were listed, with prices ranging from three to 20 shillings, plus ten specimens priced at more than 1. The most expensive items were a pair of Standardwing Bird-of-paradise Semioptera wallacii, and a fine example of the Twelve-wired Bird-of-paradise Seleucidis melanoleucus. Only one copy of this insert is known to survive, because they appear to have been removed when the volumes were bound and preserved. All 246 specimens are listed according to the original print version, with the addition of current scientific and vernacular names.