--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every sky with its varied tints and every…" description: "\"Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each bird were coloured by hand; and when it is considered that nearly two hundred and eighty thou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg" --- # Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each… ![“Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each bird were coloured by hand; and when it is considered that nearly two hundred and eighty thousand illustrations in the present work have been so treated, it will most likely cause some astonishment to those who give the subject a thought.” quote by John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg) > “Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each bird were coloured by hand; and when it is considered that nearly two hundred and eighty thousand illustrations in the present work have been so treated, it will most likely cause some astonishment to those who give the subject a thought.” [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The extensive hand‑colored illustrations demonstrate the massive effort and artistry involved, which may surprise those who consider the work superficially. **In simple terms:** The illustrations were painstakingly hand‑colored, showing great effort. Key Takeaway Recognize the labor behind detailed work. Themes art craftsmanship detail history science Mood awe curiosity respect Type descriptive historical educational When to use this quote - museum curation - academic research - art restoration - educational displays - collecting Key Concepts Illustration hand‑coloring visual documentation Questions to Reflect On - What does this effort tell us about value? - How might modern techniques change perception? A Different Perspective The process is time‑consuming and may limit reproducibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astonishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishment/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Illustrations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illustrations/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sky/) ## Related quotes > [My life is an open book. With illustrations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-hefner/my-life-is-an-open-book-with-illustrations/) [Hugh Hefner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-hefner/) > [That was in the days when everyone rode a bicycle, and the journal had a circulation of over one hundred and twenty-five thousand weekly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-c-lincoln/that-was-in-the-days-when-everyone-rode-a-bicycle-and-the-journal-had/) [Joseph C. Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-c-lincoln/) > [“When you change you are illustrating the fact that it can be done. And what people need today are illustrations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/when-you-change-you-are-illustrating-the-fact-that-it-can-be-done-and/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“We may not stay quick, If we are weak or sage, but a lot can squeak As we start to age.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-claudia-antunes/we-may-not-stay-quick-if-we-are-weak-or-sage-but-a-lot-can-squeak-as/) [Ana Claudia Antunes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-claudia-antunes/) > [It is a curious fact that with 'Through the Looking-Glass' the faculty of making book illustrations departed from me... I have done nothing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tenniel/it-is-a-curious-fact-that-with-through-the-looking-glass-the-faculty/) [John Tenniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tenniel/) > [No man with a conscience can just bat out illustrations. He's got to put all his talent and feeling into them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/no-man-with-a-conscience-can-just-bat-out-illustrations-he-s-got-to/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [“George thrust into Alma's hand a lithograph of a spotted 'Catasetum.' The orchid had been rendered so magnificently that it seemed to grow off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/george-thrust-into-alma-s-hand-a-lithograph-of-a-spotted-catasetum/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I've got lots of weird illustrations of me from Japanese fans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-bell/i-ve-got-lots-of-weird-illustrations-of-me-from-japanese-fans/) [Jamie Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-bell/) > [Not to make him blush, but any story illustrated by Mike Mignola does things that prose alone can't accomplish. The illustrations create mood and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-golden/not-to-make-him-blush-but-any-story-illustrated-by-mike-mignola-does/) [Christopher Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-golden/) > [The illustrations in picture books are the first paintings most children see, and because of that, they are incredibly important. What we see and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-browne/the-illustrations-in-picture-books-are-the-first-paintings-most/) [Anthony Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-browne/) > [To me, this is one of the great things about writing kids' books: the illustrations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/to-me-this-is-one-of-the-great-things-about-writing-kids-books-the/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“The ancient pages rose among the others, palisaded with strange letters and words, the faint script hardly more readable than the footprints of birds.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-norfolk/the-ancient-pages-rose-among-the-others-palisaded-with-strange/) [Lawrence Norfolk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-norfolk/) > [Illustrations have as much to say as the text. The trick is to say the same thing, but in a different way. It's no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-sendak/illustrations-have-as-much-to-say-as-the-text-the-trick-is-to-say-the/) [Maurice Sendak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-sendak/) > [“The analysis of our illustrations has taught us another incidental lesson. This is that, when we study the effects of various proposals, not merely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-hazlitt/the-analysis-of-our-illustrations-has-taught-us-another-incidental/) [Henry Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-hazlitt/) > [Once I have the story in my head, I write it down. The illustrations usually come last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dav-pilkey/once-i-have-the-story-in-my-head-i-write-it-down-the-illustrations/) [Dav Pilkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dav-pilkey/) ## More by John Gould > [If you don't fix latent failures in your system, you're asking for trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/if-you-don-t-fix-latent-failures-in-your-system-you-re-asking-for/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [Our great American writers were all newspaper people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/our-great-american-writers-were-all-newspaper-people/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [I don't read anything anymore. I don't have the eyesight. I read my own copy, that's all. I think I've read everything that's worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/i-don-t-read-anything-anymore-i-don-t-have-the-eyesight-i-read-my-own/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [Freud wrote a book on the essence of humor, but he didn't know what he was talking about. Max Eastman wrote a book, The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/freud-wrote-a-book-on-the-essence-of-humor-but-he-didn-t-know-what-he/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [The first zucchini I ever saw I killed it with a hoe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/the-first-zucchini-i-ever-saw-i-killed-it-with-a-hoe/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [A lecture is an occasion when you numb one end to benefit the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/a-lecture-is-an-occasion-when-you-numb-one-end-to-benefit-the-other/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [At the time the world was all upside down. The American people were beginning to move around a lot. The old hometown ties had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/at-the-time-the-world-was-all-upside-down-the-american-people-were/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [What I love about the currawongs is the way in which they appear from nowhere and, for a brief period, rule the garden's soundscape,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/what-i-love-about-the-currawongs-is-the-way-in-which-they-appear-from/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) > [I dont think a really good pie can be made without a dozen or so children peeking over your shoulder as you stoop to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/i-dont-think-a-really-good-pie-can-be-made-without-a-dozen-or-so/) [John Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) [Explore all 10 John Gould quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/) ## More Astonishment quotes > [“A writer lives, at least, in a state of astonishment. 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Yet I have lived all my days in complete astonishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-macneile-dixon/if-there-be-a-skeptical-star-i-was-born-under-it-yet-i-have-lived-all/) [William Macneile Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-macneile-dixon/) > [If you aren't constantly astonished at God's grace in your solitude, there's no way it can happen in public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-aren-t-constantly-astonished-at-god-s-grace-in-your-solitude/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Witness each moment in astounded jubilation. Take every holy breath in gratitude. Rejoice in life!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/witness-each-moment-in-astounded-jubilation-take-every-holy-breath-in/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Those who have past much of their lives in this great city, look upon its opulence and its multitudes, its extent and variety, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/those-who-have-past-much-of-their-lives-in-this-great-city-look-upon/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“See? Nothing to it." "I see all right," Carly said, her tone full of awe. She gaped at him. "What?" "Um..." "Jesus, Carly, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lissa-bryan/see-nothing-to-it-i-see-all-right-carly-said-her-tone-full-of-awe-she/) [Lissa Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lissa-bryan/) > [For a moment Clary thought she might fall; she felt as if something essential had been torn away from her, an arm or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/for-a-moment-clary-thought-she-might-fall-she-felt-as-if-something/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Both of you’ll just have to believe me. Emma’s one of those women who was born with… The thing is, the minute a heterosexual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/both-of-you-ll-just-have-to-believe-me-emma-s-one-of-those-women-who/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [“For the analyst it is a source of never-ending astonishment how comparatively well a person can function with the core of himself not participating.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-horney/for-the-analyst-it-is-a-source-of-never-ending-astonishment-how/) [Karen Horney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-horney/) > [It was only when I lay there on the rotting prison straw that I sensed within myself the first stirrings of good. Gradually it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-only-when-i-lay-there-on-the-rotting-prison-straw-that-i/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Sometimes, people trying to commit suicide manage it in a manner that leaves them breathless with astonishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-people-trying-to-commit-suicide-manage-it-in-a-manner-that/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [When I wake up, I wake to something worse. It’s the astonishment of being myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/when-i-wake-up-i-wake-to-something-worse-it-s-the-astonishment-of/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [What shall I say! And how shall I describe this Birth to you? For this wonder fills me with astonishment. The Ancient of Days…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-john-chrysostom/what-shall-i-say-and-how-shall-i-describe-this-birth-to-you-for-this/) [Saint John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-john-chrysostom/) [Browse all 227 Astonishment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each bird were coloured by hand; and when it is considered that nearly two hundred and eighty thousand illustrations in the present work have been so treated, it will most likely cause some astonishment to those who give the subject a thought.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Gould" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-every-feather-of-each-bird-were/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Astonishment" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-every-feather-of-each-bird-were/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b03/john-gould-40828_astonishment_every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-ever_1039322.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every sky with its varied tints and every feather of each bird were coloured by hand; and when it is…” — John Gould", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Gould", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gould/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Every sky with its varied tints...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-every-feather-of-each-bird-were/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gould/every-sky-with-its-varied-tints-and-every-feather-of-each-bird-were/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```