Walter Linsenmaier (18 August 1917 – 31 October 2000) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

artist and

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

. He was particularly known for his highly detailed illustrations of animals, plants, and insects which were widely published in magazines and books. He was also one of the 20th century's most important experts on the cuckoo wasp (Chrysididae) and described over 600 new species and subspecies of the insect. Linsenmaier was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Bern in 1982 in recognition of his scientific and artistic achievements and the Ernst Jünger Prize for Entomology from the

State of Baden-Württemberg State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * The State (newspaper), ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, U ...

in 1992. Linsenmaier was born in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

, Germany, but his family moved to Switzerland when he was only a year old. He initially worked as

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

ist, the same trade as his father. He then earned a teaching degree in drawing and illustration from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts and became a professional illustrator specialising in nature illustrations. He wrote and illustrated several books, the most famous of which, ''Insects of the World'' with 1,888 illustrations, was published in 1972. In 1951 Linsenmaier and his father, who was also a talented taxidermist, established the ''Tierweltpanorama'', a private museum with over 800 taxidermied animals from around the world displayed in their natural habitats. Linsenmaier died in

Ebikon Ebikon is a municipality in the district of Lucerne in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. History Ebikon was first mentioned during the late 9th Century as ''marcha Abinchova''. Geography Ebikon has an area of . Of this area, 38.4% is used ...

at the age of 83.Rosa, Paolo; Bernasconi, Marco Valerio; Wyniger, Denise (21 July 2015)
"The Linsenmaier Chrysididae collection housed in the Natur-Museum Luzern (Switzerland) and the main results of the related GBIF Hymenoptera Project (Insecta)"
'' Zootaxa'', Vol 3986, No., pp. 501–548. Retrieved 20 November 2015.

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Bilderatelier Linsenmaier
20th-century Swiss painters Swiss male painters Swiss entomologists Natural history illustrators 1917 births 2000 deaths 20th-century Swiss zoologists German emigrants to Switzerland 20th-century Swiss male artists {{Switzerland-painter-stub