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Album Containing Twelve Paintings of Insects

Unidentified artist

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The image shows a collection of twelve paintings of insects. Twelve insects, mostly butterflies and moths, are painted on a white background. The insects are multicolored in shades of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and black. The insects are arranged in four rows. The top row has three large butterflies. The second row has three medium-sized butterflies. The third row has three medium-sized moths. The bottom row has three small insects, two moths and one beetle or stick insect. The insects have two antennae each. The background has a blue border around the edge, with some areas of the blue border peeling away from the white background. The white background is also peeling in several places.

Artwork Details

Date
19th century
Medium
Album of twelve leaves; color on pith paper
Culture
China
Dimensions
600 × 407 px
Public Domain
Yes
Museum Record
View original
Palette