Magnified studies of a beetle (the ground beetle Notiophilus biguttatus?)
Drawing
4 March 1887 (drawn)
4 March 1887 (drawn)
| Artist/Maker |
Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.
As a young woman Beatrix Potter studied natural history with some seriousness, exploring the collections of the Natural History Museum, including the insect cases and fungi specimens. She had a collector’s cabinet full of specimens, from shells to dead butterflies and moths, and used a magnifying glass and a microscope to examine them more closely. She made numerous carefully observed studies of animals and plants from life.
This sheet exemplifies her quasi-scientific approach. A beetle specimen (possibly the ground beetle Notiophilus biguttatus) is studied in minute detail: the whole insect is represented by the pencil study on the left of the sheet, while the head is shown highly magnified in a detailed watercolour and pen and ink study on the right of the sheet.
As a young woman Beatrix Potter studied natural history with some seriousness, exploring the collections of the Natural History Museum, including the insect cases and fungi specimens. She had a collector’s cabinet full of specimens, from shells to dead butterflies and moths, and used a magnifying glass and a microscope to examine them more closely. She made numerous carefully observed studies of animals and plants from life.
This sheet exemplifies her quasi-scientific approach. A beetle specimen (possibly the ground beetle Notiophilus biguttatus) is studied in minute detail: the whole insect is represented by the pencil study on the left of the sheet, while the head is shown highly magnified in a detailed watercolour and pen and ink study on the right of the sheet.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Pencil, watercolour and pen and ink on paper |
| Brief description | Drawing; magnified studies of a beetle by Beatrix Potter, 4 March 1887; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.334 |
| Physical description | Enlarged pencil drawing of the entire beetle (on left of sheet) and highly magnified pencil, watercolour and pen and ink study of the head (on right of sheet). |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Production type | Unique |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'Beatrix Potter. March 4th 87.' (Inscribed in ink by the artist on paper attached to the verso.) |
| Credit line | Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number] |
| Object history | Drawn by Beatrix Potter, 4 March 1887. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale. As a young woman Beatrix Potter studied natural history with some seriousness, exploring the collections of the Natural History Museum, including the insect cases and fungi specimens. She had a collector’s cabinet full of specimens, from shells to dead butterflies and moths, and used a magnifying glass and a microscope to examine them more closely. She made numerous carefully observed studies of animals and plants from life. This sheet exemplifies her quasi-scientific approach. A beetle specimen (possibly the ground beetle Notiophilus biguttatus) is studied in minute detail: the whole insect is represented by the pencil study on the left of the sheet, while the head is shown highly magnified in a detailed watercolour and pen and ink study on the right of the sheet. |
| Bibliographic reference | Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection : the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material : watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985.
p.36; no.334
Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection: the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material: watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.36; no.334 |
| Other number | LB.334 - Linder Bequest catalogue no. |
| Collection | |
| Library number | BP.260 |
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| Record created | December 14, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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