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| thanks vintageprintable.swivelchairmedia.com. Believed PD:US in good faith |
This illustration of a black cat - "
catus niger," reads the inscription below his feet - is so awash in style and attitude that it took me a few beats before I realized there was a mouse under one paw. Leave it to 17th-century Italy to illustrate a natural history text on animals with a mix of elegance and essence. This fellow (by some other hand) is found in one of the works written by pioneering Italian naturalist
Ulisse Aldrovandi (1522-1605), who among other things established
Bologna's botanical garden.
Looks kind of primitive! Possibly because it is, in its own way.
ReplyDeleteHit "publish" too soon! Giuseppe says it's a direct ancestor, especially considering the mousie under the paw.
ReplyDeleteBlack cats never go out of style!
ReplyDelete