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Branch of guava tree with leafcutter ants, army ants, pink-toed tarantulas, huntsman spiders, and ruby...

Branch of guava tree with leafcutter ants, army ants, pink-toed tarantulas, huntsman spiders, and ruby topaz h
18th-century
tree
drawing
art
fruit
food
bird
meal
mzdrawing
spiders
wildlife
asia
eggs
devouring
nest
pink-toed-tarantulas
hummingbird
prey
guava
asian
ruby-topaz-hummingbird
tree
leafcutter-ants
pink-toed-tarantula
huntsman-spiders
scale
tropical
ants
macabre
food-chain
branch
nature
predator
spider
insects
tarantula
huntsman-spider
giant
surinam
tarantulas
18th-century
tree
drawing
art
fruit
food
bird
meal
mzdrawing
spiders
wildlife
asia
eggs
devouring
nest
pink-toed-tarantulas
hummingbird
prey
guava
asian
ruby-topaz-hummingbird
tree
leafcutter-ants
pink-toed-tarantula
huntsman-spiders
scale
tropical
ants
macabre
food-chain View More
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IMAGE number

ROC828815

Image title

Branch of guava tree with leafcutter ants, army ants, pink-toed tarantulas, huntsman spiders, and ruby topaz hummingbird, c.1701-5 (w/c & bodycolour over lightly etched outlines on vellum)

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Artist

Merian, Maria Sibylla Graff (1647-1717) / Swiss

Location

Royal Collection Trust

Medium

watercolour and bodycolour over lightly etched outlines on vellum

Date

c. 1701 AD - 1705 AD (C18th AD)

Dimensions

39x32.3 cms

Image description

Purchased by George III, when Prince of Wales. Metamorphosis of the Insects of Suriname A watercolour and bodycolour depiction of a branch from a Guava tree [Psidium guineense] being divested of its leaves by ants [Atta cephalotes]. There are big, black, hairy spiders with eight eyes [Avicularia avicularia],smaller brown ones [Heteropoda venatoria] and Humming-bird. This macabre composition includes a tarantula carrying off a hummingbird. The Latin name of the tarantula genus is Avicularia - ‘small bird’ - referring to the spiders’ supposed diet. However, tarantulas do not prey on birds, and it has even been suggested that the reputation arose because of Merian’s memorable image.

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Photo credit

Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III, 2025 / Bridgeman Images

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Largest available format 3876 × 4634 px 4 MB
Dimension [pixels] Dimension in 300dpi [mm] File size [MB]
Large 3876 × 4634 px 328 × 392 mm 3.9 MB
Medium 857 × 1024 px 73 × 87 mm 1.3 MB

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