Artwork
The Blue Winged Shoveler (Anas clypeata foemina)
The Blue Winged Shoveler (Anas clypeata foemina) is an ink print by the Baroque artist Mark Catesby. It dates from 1737 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
The Blue Winged Shoveler (Anas clypeata foemina) is a print created by English naturalist Mark Catesby in 1737, combining etching, engraving, and hand coloring on laid paper. It represents a blue-winged shoveler duck, meticulously detailed in its plumage, set within a natural environment.
Subject & Meaning
The print focuses on the blue-winged shoveler, a duck species, highlighting Catesby's emphasis on scientific observation and accurate illustration of North American wildlife.
Technique & Style
The work utilizes a combination of etching and engraving techniques with hand coloring, characteristic of 18th-century natural history illustrations. The detailed rendering of feathers and the naturalistic setting reflect the artistic and scientific aims of the time.
History & Provenance
Part of Mark Catesby's *Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands* (1729-1747), this plate was one of 220, contributing to the first comprehensive published account of North American natural history.
Artist & collection
Artist
Mark Catesby (24 March 1683 – 23 December 1749) was an English naturalist who studied the flora and fauna of the New World.
