Series I: Birds of America

Series I. Birds of America contains material related to the original double Elephant folio publication of Birds of America, published in numbers from 1827 to 1838. Plates for this edition were aquatinted by Robert Havell, Jr., after drawings by Audubon, and were hand-colored both by Havell's studio staff and Audubon's wife and children. This series is arranged into three subseries: Pattern Proof Prints, Loose Plates, and Facsimiles and Reproductions.

The fifteen color proof prints were used as patterns for the colorists of the aquatints. These sheets give primary and detailed evidence about the coloring process; several have penciled color notations, and one has a notation for textual change. Eleven loose plates from the double Elephant Folio edition, all marked with Havell's name, are also included. One of these, the White-headed Eagle, appears in both uncolored and colored format. Several modern reprints of Audubon's birds can also be found in this series.

Prints are arranged by plate number, where known.