Flos Pavonis (1719)

Maria Sibylla Merian prints bring together some of the most beautiful nature pictures ever made. Merian painted insects through their whole life cycle on the plants they eat, and in 1699 she sailed to Suriname to study tropical species at first hand. Her plates of pineapples, bananas, butterflies, spiders and frogs are bright and full of life. Our collection of fine art prints includes her Suriname plates, caterpillar book engravings and watercolours.

About Maria Sibylla Merian

Maria Sibylla Merian was born in Frankfurt on 2 April 1647, the daughter of the engraver Matthäus Merian the Elder. She trained with her stepfather, the flower painter Jacob Marrel, and from a young age raised caterpillars to watch them change.

Her caterpillar books of 1679 and 1683 showed each insect's full life cycle on the plant it feeds on, at a time when many people still believed insects grew from mud. In 1699 she sailed to Suriname with her daughter Dorothea Maria and stayed nearly two years, until illness forced her home in 1701.

Back in Europe she published Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium (1705), with 60 plates. She died on 13 January 1717. A later edition of 1719 added 12 more plates, including the caiman and the frogs.

Style and Subjects

Merian's pictures tell a story. Egg, caterpillar, chrysalis and butterfly or moth appear together on one plant, often with flowers and fruit, so you can follow the whole transformation on the page. Her compositions are lively and balanced, with leaves curling across the sheet.

The Suriname plates are rich in colour: golden pineapples, red guavas, blue morpho butterflies, green frogs. The caterpillar book plates are fine black-and-white engravings of European flowers and insects, delicate and precise.

Famous Works

• Ripe Pineapple (Ananas mur), Plate 2 (1705). The ripe fruit with butterflies and insects, her best-known image.
• Guava with Spider and Hummingbird (Guajave), Plate 18 (1705). A bird-eating spider, ants and webs on a guava tree.
• Peacock Flower (Flos pavonis), Plate 45 (1705). Golden flowers with a hawk moth and its caterpillar.
• Caiman and Coral Snake (Cayman), Plate 69 (1719). A caiman fighting a snake, added in the 1719 edition.
• Banana (Banane), Plate 12 (1705). Banana flowers and fruit with insects.
• Frogs (Grenouilles), Plate 71 (1719). Frogs and their tadpoles, from the 1719 edition.
• Opossum (Rat de forest), Plate 66 (1719). An opossum among tropical plants, from the 1719 edition.

Decorating with Merian Prints

Merian's fruit plates, especially the pineapple and banana, are a cheerful choice for a kitchen, breakfast room or dining room. The butterflies and flowers suit bedrooms, living rooms and conservatories, and look lovely in a set of three or four in pale wood or gold frames.

The frogs, caiman and opossum make playful choices for a child's room or a bathroom. Her black-and-white caterpillar book engravings sit well in a study or hallway in thin black frames.

FAQ

Who was Maria Sibylla Merian?

Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717) was a German-born naturalist and artist who painted insects and plants. She is known for showing the full life cycle of insects on their food plants.

What is her most famous work?

Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium (1705), with 60 plates of insects and plants from Suriname. The 1719 edition added 12 more.

Why did Merian go to Suriname?

To study tropical insects and plants at first hand. She sailed in 1699 with her daughter Dorothea Maria and stayed nearly two years.

What made her work important?

Her caterpillar books of 1679 and 1683 showed metamorphosis in order, at a time when many people still thought insects grew from mud.

Who taught Merian?

She trained with her stepfather, the flower painter Jacob Marrel. Her father was the engraver Matthäus Merian the Elder.

Related Artists

• Jacob Marrel: her stepfather and teacher, a flower painter
• Matthäus Merian the Elder: her father, the engraver
• Joris Hoefnagel: earlier painter of insects in miniature
• Mark Catesby: later naturalist who painted animals with their plants