Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber (1739-1810) (compiled by)
Die Saugthiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur mit Beschreibungen
Wolfgang Walther, Erlangen: 1775-1792
Hand-colored engravings
11 x 9 inches each
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Engravings of Monkeys and Mammals
Johann von Schreber, Germany: 1775-1792
Johann von Schreber, Germany: 1775-1792
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Charming series of monkey prints from a late 18th century natural history periodical comprised of 755 animal studies, compiled by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber. Each is done in the characteristic style of the period, with its own anthropomorphic characteristics and personality. Collectively they are known as Schreber's "Fantastic Beasts."
Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber studied medicine, natural history and theology, then undertook an intensive study of botany at Uppsala with the great Swedish taxonomist Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) in 1758. In 1761 he received his M.D. degree and was appointed doctor at the pedagogium in present-day Mecklenburg. In 1770, he was appointed third-level professor of medicine at the University of Erlangen, working his way up to first-level professor by 1793. In the meantime, in 1773, he was also appointed director of the botanical gardens and of the museum of natural history. He made many contributions to the study of natural history. One of the most common mosses in Europe and North America, Schreber's Feathermoss (Pleurozium schreberi), is named for him. In 1774, von Schreber authored a multivolume set of books on the mammals of the world, Die Saugthiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur mit Beschreibungen with 755 hand-colored plates. However, for the most part the artists had never seen he animals they were illustrating, and instead relied on written or verbal descriptions of explorers who had actually seen them in their travels. Some of the drawings, therefore, took on slightly surreal distortions.
References:
"Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber." Illinois Mycological Association. http://www.ilmyco.gen.chicago.il.us/ima/Authors/JCDvonSchr1136.html (3 April 2003).
Rook, Earl J.S. "Pleurozium schreberi." Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. 11 October 1999. http://www.rook.org/earl/bwca/nature/moss/pleuroziumsch.html (3 April 2003).
"Schreber's Fantastic Beasts." Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Foundation. http://www.nhm.org/research/libraries/beasts/ (2 April 2003).