Art History Animalia

Happy International #HorseshoeCrabDay!

Heinrich Harder (German, 1858-1935) "Pfeilschwankrebs" [Horseshoe Crabs], 1916 Collector Card from Tiere der Urwelt [Animals of the Prehistoric World] Series I

Horseshoe Crabs (Xiphosura) have been around for a long time...their fossil record goes back over 440 mya! This card illustrates the Atlantic Horseshoe Crab (Limulus polyphemus), one of four still-living species and the only one native to the Americas. Also, their common name is misleading - they are not true crabs or even crustaceans, but rather chelicerates, making them closer relatives of arachnids and sea spiders!

For International #HorseshoeCrabDay:

"Schwertschwänze oder Molukkenkrebse" ["Swordtails or Mollucan Crabs," aka Horseshoe Crabs]

From Brehms Tierleben, Leipzig & Wien, 1893.

Happy International #HorseshoeCrabDay!

Elfriede Abbe (American, 1919–2012) Horseshoe Crab and Rushes, n.d., 49/50 Wood engraving on Japanese paper, printed in brown ink Johnson Museum of Art 2010.013.005

Arachnid appreciation post:

Marble cylinder seals from ancient Mesopotamia, Late Uruk / Jamdat Nasr Period, c. 3500-2900 BCE: (7) Three #Spiders (8) #Scorpion with a Plant on display at The Morgan Library & Museum

It’s #MosaicMonday so time for yet another #animal piece from the 420 original 1906 Moravian tile #mosaics by Henry Chapman Mercer on the #Pennsylvania Capitol floor: 103. “LOCUST” which is actually a cicada - hope to hear the annual broods here soon! 😃

For #InsectWeek on #TilesOnTuesday + #TwoForTuesday:

82 & 92 Grasshopper From the ongoing search for all the animals from the 420 original 1906 Moravian tile mosaics by Henry Chapman Mercer on the Pennsylvania Capitol floor.

#WorldBeeDay:

Bees, Plate 70 lithograph from an 1820 edition of A History of the Earth and Animated Nature by Oliver Goldsmith (1728/30-1774). ID key printed on bottom: Honey Bee 1 Worker 2 Male 3 Queen / 4,5 Common Humble Bee / Lapidary Bee 6 Male 7 Female / 8 Moss or Carder Bee / 9 Donovan's Humble Bee / 10 Harris Humble Bee / False Humble Bees 11 Apathus Vestalis 12 Apathus Repestris

We don't have an exact birthdate for Flemish artist Jan van Kessel the Elder, but he was baptised #OTD (5 Apr 1626 - d. 17 April 1679) so here are three versions of his caterpillars and snakes signature (+some bonus spiders for #BeKindToSpidersWeek):

Jan van Kessel the Elder (Flemish, 1626–1679) "Garden and house spiders with grass snakes and caterpillars contorted and entwined to spell the artist's name" 1657 oil painting on copper H 15 cm (5.9 in) x W 20 cm (7.8 in) Sothebys

Jan van Kessel the Elder (Flemish, 1626–1679) The Four Continents: The Continent of Europe [detail of the signature panel] c. 1660s oil painting on copper H 48.4 cm (19 in) x W 67.1 cm (26.4 in) Alte Pinakothek

Jan van Kessel the Elder (Flemish, 1626–1679) "Seventeen panels depicting snakes, lizards, flowers, caterpillars, beetles, butterflies and other insects" [detail including the signature panel] 1658 oil painting on copper, 39 x 56 cm (15 x 22 in) and 14 by 19 cm (5.5 x 7.5 in) Oak Spring Garden Foundation, Upperville, call no. NW-UL-NW

You can read more about this creative signature, and see his son Ferdinand's version too, here:

#TwoForTuesday for #BeKindToSpidersWeek: #pleasenosquish:

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) The Spider (L'Araignée), plate facing page 144 from Eaux-fortes originale pour des textes de Buffon (Histoire naturelle) made 1936, published 1942 aquatint, sugar lift etching, scraping, and drypoint on ivory laid paper image: 31 × 22.5 cm (12 1/4 × 8 7/8 in.); sheet: 36.8 × 27.7 cm (14 1/2 × 10 15/16 in.) Art Institute of Chicago

2. Paloma Picasso (b. 1949) for Tiffany & Co spider brooch, late 20th century 18k gold, diamonds, tourmaline, onyx (some sources list this as black jade) W 1.57 in (39.88 mm) x D 0.35 in (8.89 mm) x L 1.53 in (38.87 mm) 1st Dibs

A lovely spider piece for #BeKindToSpidersWeek...#pleasenosquish:

Spindle with foot plate Russia, 18th century made of gold with baroque pearl, rose stones and enamel Hallwylska museet

"SPINDLE with foot plate. Made of gold with baroque pearl, rose stones and enamel. The spider with the legs of gold, with remnants of black enamel, the back body (abdomen) consisting of a large baroque pearl, the underside convex of black enamel, the head and mouthpiece with a rose stone."

Photos: Helena Bonnevier, Hallwylska museum/SHM (CC BY 4.0)

2-8 April is both #BatAppreciationWeek🦇 AND #BeKindToSpidersWeek🕷️! As I love both bats & spiders expect lots of art featuring both all week long 😎

Ernst Haeckel, Kunstformen der Natur (1904), Plate 66 Arachnida & Plate 67 Chiroptera, BHL.

For #SaveASpiderDay please enjoy this sparkly spider bling from the American Museum of Natural History's 2021 ”Beautiful Creatures” exhibition:

#PleaseNoSquish 🕷️

Tarantula brooch by Hemmerle, 1995; horse conch pearl, Umba sapphires, diamonds, colored diamonds and gold.

PS - if you missed this exhibition there is also a book available with lots of lovely photos! The spider brooch is on pp. 138-9.

Beautiful Creatures: Jewelry Inspired by the Animal Kingdom (2020)