No. 117 of 248 · The Natural History Series
Red Blossoms and Moths
Pictures by Maria Sibylla Merian
Moths with golden eyespots and a cicada drift around a branch of red pomegranate blossoms in this plate by Maria Sibylla Merian, from her 1705 book on the insects of Suriname. Merian sailed to Suriname at 52 to draw insects alongside the plants they feed on, and some copies of her book were hand-coloured by her own daughters. For someone who loves nature and old art.
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On the back
From the great natural-history books of the 1700s to the 1900s / Red Blossoms and Moths / From Suriname / Merian painted on vellum in watercolour, and her book was engraved in Amsterdam and coloured by hand, some copies by her own daughters. / Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium, 1705 / Maria Sibylla Merian sailed to Suriname at 52 to draw insects with the plants they feed on.
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