Lifecycle of the night peacock butterfly, Maria Sibylla Merian (workshop of), after Dorothea Maria Gsell, after 1679
opaque and transparent watercolour, over traces of graphite, on vellum, h 192mm × w 155mm Catalogue entry
Painted on vellum, this depiction may be by Merian’s youngest daughter, Dorothea Maria Gsell. She worked in her mother’s studio, travelled with her to Suriname, and eventually moved to St Petersburg at the invitation of Tsar Peter the Great. There she taught at the Academy of Sciences and was keeper of the natural history collections.
