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A bottle gourd sits in middle of the page, tilted slightly towards right, a butterfly flies in from the left.

This unusual gourd has a large round bottom, narrow neck like a bottle, and a larger tip like a small cucumber, a short remnant of the stem remains. It’s a chartreuse green color. Shading and highlights enhance the roundness of the form, dark green venation is described. A single light brown seed of the plant is drawn in the middle on left. A detailed butterfly of browns, whites, and orange, open wings, on the left, faces the top of the gourd. Shadowing underneath gives everything dimensionality. Manuscript of the Latin names in the lower left.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
4.1965.8
People
Unidentified Artist
Previously attributed to Josef Abel, Austrian (1764 - 1818)
Title
Plant and Insect Study: Bottle Gourd; Io Butterfly
Classification
Drawings
Work Type
drawing
Date
18th century
Culture
Austrian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/311879

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Watercolor over graphite on cream antique laid paper
Dimensions
36.8 x 24 cm (14 1/2 x 9 7/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • watermark: coat-of-arms with fleur-de-lys and C & I HONIG (similar to Heawood 1824)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Loan from the Collection of Edouard Sandoz
Object Number
4.1965.8
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
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Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 2240 18th Century, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 10/22/2019 - 02/25/2020

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu