Antique chromolithograph butterfly plate from Macrolepidoptera of the World, Volume 5, Dr. Adelbert Seitz, Editor. Papilio - Parnassius - Plate 17

The Seitz plates are spectacular examples of scientific illustration and printing from the early 1900s. The use of metallic inks is unusual and makes some plates particularly dynamic. These were printed over a period from 1907 to 1954, with interruptions by two World Wars. All of these plates will mat and frame handsomely. They measure 9 3/4 " x 13" with a roughly 1 1/4" margin outside the black frame line. They are on  a cream paper that is only very slightly edge-toned. Some have bumps that slightly bent an upper corner as noted below. These will not show when matted. These are rare and unusual and are from a set that was assembled over the years from loose pages that were published unbound.  Plate 17 shows butterflies of the genera  Papilio and Parnassius. Papilio, the swallowtails, are of worldwide distribution, but Parnassius is restricted to western North America, and we would not have expected this genus to be included in this volume. This plate is particularly well preserved, w