Dragonflies, a Bumble-Bee, and a Butterfly

1646

Wenceslaus Hollar

Associated Names
Wenceslaus Hollar

Artist, Bohemian, 1607 - 1677

This is a drawing of various insects. The image showcases a collection of insects in a detailed and richly textured manner, with each insect depicted carefully. The insects are arranged in a visually engaging composition that highlights their diversity in form and size. Among them, a large grasshopper-like insect is at the center with expansive wings, while a dragonfly with elongated wings is nearby, with other insects filling the remaining space in the illustration.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to plate): 8.1 × 11.9 cm (3 3/16 × 4 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.4944

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    New Hollstein, no. 918, State i/iii

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Count Giuseppe Archinto [1783-1861], Milan; Arkady Alferoff [1811-1872], Bonn; Rudolf Philip Goldschmidt [c.1840-1914], Berlin (Lugt 2926); (C.G. Boerner, Leipzig, May 7-9,1928, lot 637); purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], 1928; gift to NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1982

  • Pennington, Richard. A Descriptive Catalogue of the Etched Work of Wenceslaus Hollar 1607-1677. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982, no. 2169, state i/iii.

1996

  • The New Hollstein German Engravings, Etchings and Woodcuts, 1400-1700. (Wenceslaus Hollar, Simon Turner, author). Rotterdam: Sound & Vision Interactive, 1996-, no. 918, state i/iii.

Inscriptions

in plate, at top right: WHollar fecit ex Collectione / Arundeliana 1646; verso, lower left, in graphite, by a later hand: 637; verso, bottom center, in graphite, by a later hand: P. 2169

Wikidata ID

Q65026348

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