Copperplate engraving of a stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) at actual size, with Hand Colouring possibly by Donovan himself. While most plates were thinly

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Copperplate engraving of a stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) at actual size, with Hand Colouring possibly by Donovan himself. While most plates were thinly coloured to tint the interstices of the lines of the engraving beneath, Donovan laid the paint on more heavily so that each illustration becomes a miniature in its own right. The stag beetle had been an iconic insect for illustrators since Albrecht Durer's famous watercolour in 1505.

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Size: 3744px × 5616px
Photo credit: © PAUL D STEWART/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 18th, antique, artwork, beetle., british, century, cervus, coleoptera, colour, donovan, edward, entomology, european, history, illustration, insect, lucanus, natural, painting, print, stag