Robert Havell Jr.: Pioneer of Aquatint and Audubon's Legacy Robert Havell Jr. (born November 25, 1793, Reading, Berkshire, England—died November 11, 1878, Tarrytown, New York, U.S.) was an American landscape painter and printmaker who engraved many of the plates for John James Audubon’s four-volume *The Birds of America* (435 hand-coloured plates, 1827–38). He is considered one of the foremost practitioners of aquatint engraving during the Victorian era, a technique that revolutionized botanical illustration and cemented his place in art history. ### Early Life and Family Roots: An Artistic…