Masked barn owls from 'A synopsis of the birds of Australia and the adjacent islands'

This copy of 'A synopsis of the birds of Australia and the adjacent islands' was owned by Australian medical practitioner and natralist, George Bennett. It includes an inserted author's letter from John Gould to Dr Bennett and a photograph of John Gould tipped in on the flyleaf.

These pages show the Masked barn owl (Strix personata) and the Tasmanian masked barn owl (Strix castanops).

This book shows the heads of nearly 170 birds that had been sent to Elizabeth and John Gould by Elizabeth's brothers, Stephen and Charles Coxen. The artwork and lithography for this book is believed to be by Elizabeth Gould. Each copy is unique and has differences, as can be seen in the three copies owned by the University of Sydney Library.

The lithographs for Gould's work were generally hand-coloured by a group of artists led by Gabriel Bayfield. These artists mostly worked at home, which is one of the reasons there are variations between copies.