Tag Archives: Animals

1618: Helmet

Posted on October 7, 2017 by corvusfugit

Nagasone Tojiro Mitsumasa: Helmet in the form of a sea conch shell (1618) (source)

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2013: Murmuration

Posted on October 6, 2017 by corvusfugit

Owen Humphries: A murmuration of starlings in Rigg near Gretna, Dumfriesshire, Scotland – November 26, 2013. (source)

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2012: Gods of New Jersey

Posted on October 5, 2017 by corvusfugit

Peter Ferguson: Gods of New Jersey (c. 2012)

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2nd Century AD: I Was Trained to Run Boldly through Strange Forests

Posted on October 5, 2017 by corvusfugit

A 1st or 2nd century Roman epitaph for a pet dog named Margarita (“Pearl”), written from the point of view of the deceased: [G]ALLIA · ME · GENVIT · NOMEN · MIHI · DIVITIS · VNDAE CONCHA · DEDIT · … Continue reading →

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1875: An Absolute Democracy

Posted on October 5, 2017 by corvusfugit

The notion has always very generally prevailed that the queen of the bees is an absolute ruler, and issues her royal orders to willing subjects. Hence Napoleon the First sprinkled the symbolic bees over the imperial mantle that bore the … Continue reading →

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16th Century: Dog and Cat

Posted on October 5, 2017 by corvusfugit

Dosso Dossi: Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Dog and Cat (16th Century) “This kind of moody portrait, or image of a particular human type, was popularised by Giorgione: here the dog and cat may allude to conflicting sides of … Continue reading →

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1753: The Wolf Peach

Posted on October 4, 2017 by corvusfugit

In 1753, Linnaeus gave the tomato its Latin species name lycopersicum, which means “wolf peach.” Image: Luis Meléndez: Still Life with Tomatoes, a Bowl of Aubergines and Onions (c. 1771-1774)

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1900: Versions

Posted on October 1, 2017 by corvusfugit

     Hans Thoma: Wondrous Birds (1892) W. W. Denslow: Illustration from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)

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1914: Kotsuis and Hohhuq

Posted on October 1, 2017 by corvusfugit

Edward S. Curtis: Kotsuis and Hohhuq (Nakoaktok) (1914); “These two masked performers in the winter dance represent huge, mythical birds. The mandibles of these tremendous wooden masks are controlled by strings.” The ‘Nak’waxda’xw (or Nakoaktok) are a nation of Kwak’wala-speaking … Continue reading →

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1865: The Master Is Dead, the Master Is Dead

Posted on October 1, 2017 by corvusfugit

A North German custom and superstition is, that if the master of the house dies, a person must go to the Beehive, knock, and repeat these words: “The master is dead, the master is dead,” else the Bees will fly … Continue reading →

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