'The Coendou' (or Canada Porcupine), viewed in profile, facing to the left of the image. Wood-engraving print on laid paper. Illustration featured in 'A General History of Quadrupeds' (first published 1790). Engraved by Thomas Bewick. Newcastle upon Tyne, England.

A Canadian Porcupine (also known as a North American Porcupine), viewed in profile, facing to the left of the image, with its head slightly lowered.

Formerly C.8992, a list showing both new and old numbers in 64/2371

This engraving featured in Thomas Bewick's first major independent publication, A General History of Quadrupeds, first printed and published in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1790. The publication contains illustrations of animals, alongside brief descriptions of their appearance, habits and habitats, accompanied by a number of illustrative vignettes, used mainly as tailpieces.

The text accompanying the illustration (in the publication) reads as follows:

'THE COENDOU
of Mr Busson, which he likewise calls the BRAZILIAN PORCUPINE, inhabits the same countries with the last, and its habits and mode of living are similar; but, in respect to its figure, it seems to be a very different animal. Its ears are short, and hid in the hair; its head, body, and upper part of its tail, are covered with long soft hair, in which are interspersed a number of strong sharp spines; its tail is shorter than that of the preceding species, and it uses it in the same manner in descending trees, frequently suspending itself from the branches.

An animal, similar to this, is found in Canada, and various parts of North-America, as high as Hudson’s Bay. – It is called the URSON, or CANADA PORCUPINE.
Many of the trading Indians, during their long excursions, depend on this creature for a supply of food, and esteem it both wholesome and pleasant: They also make use of the quills to trim the edges of their deer-skin habits, so as to look like fringe; and stick them in their noses and ears to make holes for their rings.'

Taken from: Beilby, Ralph and Bewick, Thomas. A General History of Quadrupeds. Newcastle upon Tyne. Third Edition, 1792.

Historical significance: Thomas Bewick was the first engraver to exploit fully the advantages of end-grain wood (the wood is cut across, rather than along, the grain). Once it had been proved that the technique could rival the fine effects of metal engraving, the advantages of wood engraving to the book trade were quickly recognised. Allowing both text and illustration to be printed in one operation, it ousted the intaglio process as the favourite for book illustration and was only superseded at the end of the nineteenth century when methods of photomechanical reproduction were developed.

Thomas Bewick's A General History of Quadrupeds was first published in 1790.

CIRC.584-1964