Lebende Thierbilder

Munich: Braun und Schneider, 1900. A quintessential example of Lothar Meggendorfer’s unparalleled ability
to seamlessly merge art, humor, and mechanics into one harmonious creation

[MOVABLE]. MEGGENDORFER, Lothar. Lebende Thierbilder. Ein Ziehbilderbuch. Vierzehnte Auflage. Verlag von Braun und Schneider in München, ca. 1900.

[Living Animal Pictures. A drawing picture book. Fourteenth edition. Published by Braun and Schneider in Munich, ca. 1900].

Folio (13 x 9 3/8 inches; 330 x 238 mm.). [17], [1 blank] pp. Foreword and eight bright and vivid color panels with fully functional moveable parts, with accompanying text. (truncated)

Publisher's black cloth over tan color pictorial boards. Small booksellers ticket of Emil Apolant, Berlin, and early ink inscription dated 1928 on front pastedown. Minor rubbing to extremities of boards. The first plate "Der Kettenhund" is missing the dogs tail; on the fourth plate "Der Fuhrmannsgaul" at top right the bird has been expertly restored.
Minimal offsetting from the plates to opposite text leaves. Overall an excellent example.

Lebende Thierbilder is a quintessential example of Lothar Meggendorfer’s unparalleled ability to seamlessly merge art, humor, and mechanics into one harmonious creation. It demonstrates how he transformed the simple act of reading a picture book into an interactive and immersive experience.

The first of two pure animal picture books with a drawing mechanism, a genre to which Meggendorfer, as a good animal observer and "animal fool", had a very special relationship at the same time. Lebende Thierbilder (translated as Living Animal Pictures), is one of Lothar Meggendorfer's most famous movable picture books. This work exemplifies his mastery of interactive illustrations and his profound understanding of animal behavior. The title literally translates to "Living Animal Pictures," and it features animals depicted with movable mechanisms that mimic naturalistic movements - an aspect that delighted readers of all ages.
The fourteenth edition indicates the book's enduring popularity, especially given its publication by Braun & Schneider, a Munich-based publisher renowned for high-quality prints and children's books. By around 1900, Meggendorfer’s books were already iconic for their innovation, with each mechanism requiring careful engineering and craftsmanship.

The plates:

1. Der Kettenhund (The chained dog)
2. Am Teiche (At the pond)
3. Die Schafherde (Flock of sheep)
4. Der Fuhrmannsgaul (The carthorse)
5. Im Viehstall (In the cattle barn)
6. Cute freunde (Cute friends)
7. Der Hirsch (The deer)
8. Der Uhu (The eagle owl). (Inventory #: 06073)