Two Wood Pigeons – Charles Collins | Irish Art Print

This is a painting made by a man whose job title was Bird Painter to the Royal Society.

That is not a ceremonial honour. Charles Collins (1680–1744) was employed to paint birds with the same rigour a scientist would bring to taxonomy — and the results were some of the most precise, most beautiful animal studies produced in eighteenth-century Ireland and Britain. Two Wood Pigeons comes from his landmark series Icones avium cum nominibus anglicis, published in 1736 in collaboration with naturalist John Lee. It is scientific illustration elevated to fine art.

The two birds are rendered with extraordinary attention — feathers, posture, weight, the particular stillness of a perched bird caught mid-observation. Collins gives them presence without sentimentality. This is a painting that respects its subject.

For anyone who collects natural history art, bird studies, or eighteenth-century Irish painting — or who simply wants something genuinely distinctive on a wall — this is the kind of piece that rewards looking. It works in a study, a library, a hallway, or any room where the person who decorated it has taste and knows it.

Collins was born in Dublin and his legacy sits at the intersection of Irish artistic heritage and the golden age of British natural history illustration. His works are held in significant institutional collections, including Anglesey Abbey.

Printed on 250gsm fine-art matte paper — acid-free, FSC-certified, built to last.

• Archival-quality printing for exceptional colour depth and detail
• Matte, uncoated natural white finish
• Acid-free to prevent yellowing over time
• FSC-certified sustainable paper
• Unframed print, ready for your own frame