Sharpe was born in London and studied at Brighton College, The King's School, Peterborough and Loughborough Grammar School. At the age of sixteen he went to work for Smith & Sons in London, and in 1864 he commenced his first ornithological work, the Monograph of the Kingfishers (1868-71).
In 1867 Sharpe was appointed Librarian of the Zoological Society, and in 1872 he joined the British Museum as a Senior Assistant in the Department of Zoology, taking charge of the bird collection. He became Assistant Keeper in 1895, remaining there until his death from pneumonia in 1909.
Sharpe founded the British Ornithologists' Club in 1892 and edited its bulletin. He wrote thirteen and a half of the 27 volumes of the Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum (1874-1898).

Binding information

This is a fine example of a modern pictorial binding illustrating the subject of the book it covers. Executed by Richard Day, later Head Bookbinder of the Royal Library from 1976 to 2001. The kingfisher design was executed in inlaid and onlaid coloured leathers.

Green morocco, backboard plain: front board shows a kingfisher on a branch in coloured leather onlays, black-tooled details and outline: spine, another kingfisher, details tooled in blue and black, title, author and imprint in black: signed R Day 1966.