|
(Passion flower) Metamorphasibus Insectorum , The Hague: 1726, $4,200. |
|
|
(Passion Flower) XXI
Maria Sybilla Merian (1647-1717) created one of the most exceptional illustrated natural history works of the early 18th century. Principally an entomologist devoted to the study of European insects and their metamorphoses. Merian was the first to illustrate the full metamorphoses of many species of butterflies and moths. In 1685, Merian converted to Labadism and with her two daughters moved to the religious colony in Holland, a castle, which was owned by the Governor of the Dutch Colony of Surinam (Guiana). His cabinet of exotic butterflies and insects fascinated her and in 1699 the intrepid fifty two year old and her youngest daughter Dorothea, left for South America to study the insects and flora of Surinam. After two years in the wilderness, recording her observations of plants and the transformations of the native insects, Merian returned to Europe where she produced her important masterpiece, Dissertatio de Generatione et Metamorphasibus Insectorum Surinamensium, The Hague: Gosse, 1726. This splendid work documented the insects of Surinam in their full life cycles, each shown with a native plant upon which it lived. The first edition was issued in 1705 with 60 plates and then twelve more were added to later editions based on the drawings by her daughter. Her artistic sensibility and the charming detail of her drawings were unmatched. Merian’s work remains as popular today as when it was originally issued. These rare prints are among the most desirable of all natural history images.
Copperplate engraving with hand color. Engravings by J. Mulder, P. Sluyter and D. Stoopendaal.
Folio, 15 x 11 inches plate size, 25 x 201/2 inches framed size.
Archival matting and framing with hand drawn French wash matting and gold leaf moulding. Excellent condition.
|
