FORT WORTH, TEXAS — One of the country’s finest private collections of rare illustrated books is the subject of a special exhibition opening at the Amon Carter Museum January 29 and continuing through May 8. “Stamped with a National Character: Nineteenth Century American Color Plate Books” will feature more than 120 items that trace the development of color illustration in Nineteenth Century America, from its tentative beginnings when hand colored engraving was most prevalent to the invention of photomechanical reproduction processes.

Assembled by noted New Haven, Conn.-based historian and antiquarian William S. Reese, the books represent rare examples on such varied subjects as natural history, Native Americans, travel, medicine, architecture, landscaping and fashion. The exhibition is a journey into the nearly forgotten world of color-printing practices, a time when producing beautiful books was a point of national pride.

Each publication is a work of extraordinary artistry, and together, the books offer viewers insight into the tastes and interests of the Nineteenth Century, reflecting Americans’ eagerness for knowledge and accurate information. Color reproductions are commonplace now, but in the early Nineteenth Century, producing a color plate was an elaborate process executed entirely by hand. Color in books represented luxury, and most publishers used it judiciously until late in the century, when photomechanical printing made color much less expensive.

The exhibition will explore both the evolution of printing processes and the uses of color-plate books in cultural and scientific contexts. It begins with the earliest color-plate book produced in the United States, William R. Birch’s The City of Philadelphia…As It Appeared in the Year 1800, a spectacular 28-page book with hand colored copper plate engravings. Also included in the exhibition is a series of John James Audubon’s remarkable publications, the most notable of which is the 1861 chromolithographed edition of The Birds of America, the largest American color-plate book of the century. The exhibition concludes with the 1890s and the rise of the three-color halftone, a more economical process that soon became the primary means of color reproduction in the Twentieth Century.

The Amon Carter Museum is at 3501 Camp Bowie Boulevard. Museum hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; Thursday, 10 am to 8 pm; and Sunday, noon to 5 pm. For information, 817-738-1933 or www.CarterMuseum.org.