Maria Sibylla Merian (2 April 164713 January 1717) was a German naturalist and

scientific illustrator Technical Illustration is illustration meant to visually communicate information of a technical nature. Technical illustrations can be components of technical drawings or diagrams. Technical illustrations in general aim "to generate expressive ...

. She was one of the earliest European naturalists to observe insects directly. Merian was a descendant of the

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

branch of the Swiss

Merian family Merian is a patrician family of Basel, Switzerland. It consists of two branches (an 'elder Basel line' and a 'younger' one) who were citizens of Basel from 1498 and from 1549/1553. The family were represented in the Grand Council of Basel-Stadt ...

. Merian received her artistic training from her stepfather,

Jacob Marrel Jacob Marrel (1613/1614 – 11 November 1681) was a German still life painter active in Utrecht (city), Utrecht during the Dutch Golden Age. Biography Jacob Marrel was born in Frankenthal. He moved with his family in 1624 to Frankfurt, where he ...

, a student of the still life painter Georg Flegel. Merian published her first book of natural illustrations in 1675. She had started to collect insects as an adolescent. At age 13, she raised

silkworms The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically im ...

. In 1679, Merian published the first volume of a two-volume series on

caterpillars Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Symp ...

; the second volume followed in 1683. Each volume contained 50 plates that she engraved and etched. Merian documented evidence on the process of metamorphosis and the plant hosts of 186 European insect species. Along with the illustrations Merian included descriptions of their life cycles. In 1699, Merian travelled to Dutch Guiana to study and record the tropical insects native to the region. In 1705, she published ''Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium''. Merian's ''Metamorphosis'' has been credited with influencing a range of naturalist illustrators. Because of her careful observations and documentation of the metamorphosis of the

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprise ...

, Merian is considered by David Attenborough to be among the more significant contributors to the field of entomology. She discovered many new facts about insect life through her studies. Until her careful, detailed work, it had been thought that insects were "born of mud" by

spontaneous generation Spontaneous generation is a superseded scientific theory that held that living creatures could arise from nonliving matter and that such processes were commonplace and regular. It was hypothesized that certain forms, such as fleas, could arise f ...

Life and career

Maria Sibylla Merian portrait from 500DM banknote

Maria Sibylla Merian's father, the Swiss engraver and publisher

Matthäus Merian Matthäus is a given name or surname. Notable people with the name include: ;Surname * Lothar Matthäus, (born 1961), German former football player and manager ;Given name * Matthäus Aurogallus, Professor of Hebrew at the University of Wittenbe ...

the Elder, married her mother, his second wife, Johanna Sybilla Heyne, in 1646. Maria was born within the next year, making her his ninth child. Her father died in 1650, and in 1651, her mother remarried

, the flower and still life painter. Marrel encouraged Merian to draw and paint. While he lived mostly in Holland, his pupil

Abraham Mignon Abraham Mignon or Minjon (21 June 164027 March 1679), was a still life painter.Abraham Mignon
at the

trained her. At the age of 13, she painted her first images of insects and plants from specimens she had captured. Early on, she had access to many books about natural history. Regarding her youth, in the foreword to ''Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium'', Merian wrote:Foreword from ''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium'' In May 1665, Merian married Marrel's apprentice, Johann Andreas Graff from

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

; his father was a poet and director of the local high school, one of the leading schools in seventeenth-century Germany. In January 1668, she had her first child, Johanna Helena, and the family moved to Nuremberg in 1670, her husband's home town. While living there, Merian continued painting, working on parchment and linen, and creating designs for

embroidery Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen ...

. She also gave drawing lessons to unmarried daughters of wealthy families (her "''Jungferncompaney''", i.e. virgin group), which helped her family financially and increased its social standing. This provided her with access to the finest gardens, maintained by the wealthy and elite, where she could continue collecting and documenting insects. In 1675, Merian was included in

Joachim von Sandrart Joachim von Sandrart (12 May 1606 – 14 October 1688) was a German Baroque art-historian and painter, active in Amsterdam during the Dutch Golden Age. He is most significant for his collection of biographies of Dutch and German artists the '' T ...

's German Academy. Aside from painting flowers she made copperplate engravings. After attending Sandrart's school she published flower pattern books. In 1678, she gave birth to her second daughter

Dorothea Maria Dorothea (also spelled Dorothée, Dorotea or other variants) is a female given name from Greek (Dōrothéa) meaning "God's Gift". It may refer to: People * Dorothea Binz (1920–1947), German concentration camp officer executed for war cri ...

. Other women still-life painters, such as Merian's contemporary

Margaretha de Heer Margaretha de Heer (1603–1665) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Biography Margaretha de Heer was born in Leeuwarden in the Dutch Republic in 1603. She was the daughter of the glass painter Arjen Willems de Heer, and the older sister of the arti ...

, included insects in their floral pictures, but did not breed or study them. In 1679, she published her first work on insects, the first of a two-volume illustrated book focusing on insect metamorphosis. In 1678, the family had moved to

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, but her marriage was an unhappy one. She moved in with her mother after her stepfather died in 1681. In 1683, she traveled to

Gottorp Gottorf Castle (german: Schloss Gottorf, da, Gottorp Slot, Low German: ''Gottorp'') is a castle and estate in the city of Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is one of the most important secular buildings in Schleswig-Holstein, and ha ...

and was attracted to the

Labadists The Labadists were a 17th-century Protestant religious community movement founded by Jean de Labadie (1610–1674), a French pietist. The movement derived its name from that of its founder. Jean de Labadie's life Jean de Labadie (1610–1674) ...

' community in

Holstein Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...

. In 1685, Merian travelled with her mother, husband, and children to

Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...

where her half-brother Caspar Merian had lived since 1677.

Friesland

From 1685 onward, Merian, her daughters, and her mother lived with the Labadist community, which had settled on the grounds of a stately home – Walt(h)a Castle – at Wieuwerd in Friesland. They stayed there for three years and Merian found the time to study natural history and Latin, the language in which scientific books were written. In the moors of Friesland, she observed the birth and development of frogs, and collected them to dissect them. Merian stayed with the community until 1691. In Wieuwerd, the Labadists engaged in printing and many other occupations, including farming and milling. At its peak, the religious community numbered around 600, with many more adherents further afield. Visitors came from England, Italy, Poland, and elsewhere, but not all approved of the strict discipline, separatism, and community property. Merian's husband was refused by the Labadists, but came back twice.Wolfgang Klötzer (Hrsg.): Frankfurter Biographie. Zweiter Band M–Z. Verlag Waldemar Kramer, Frankfurt am Main 1996,

Amsterdam

In 1690, Merian's mother had died. A year later, she moved with her daughters to Amsterdam. In 1692, her husband divorced her. In Amsterdam the same year, her daughter Johanna married Jakob Hendrik Herolt, a successful merchant in the Suriname trade, originally from

Bacharach Bacharach (, also known as ''Bacharach am Rhein'') is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Rhein-Nahe, whose seat is in Bingen am Rhein, although that town is not withi ...

. The flower painter

Rachel Ruysch Rachel Ruysch (3 June 1664 – 12 October 1750) was a Dutch still-life painter from the Northern Netherlands. She specialized in flowers, inventing her own style and achieving international fame in her lifetime. Due to a long and successful caree ...

became Merian's pupil. Merian made a living selling her paintings. She and her daughter Johanna sold flower pictures to art collector Agnes Block. By 1698 Merian lived in a well-furnished house on Kerkstraat. In 1699, the city of Amsterdam granted Merian permission to travel to Suriname in South America, along with her younger daughter

. On 10 July, the fifty-two year old Merian and her daughter set sail. The goal of the mission was to spend five years illustrating new species of insects. In order to finance the mission, Maria Sibylla sold 255 of her own paintings. She would later write:

In Holland, with much astonishment what beautiful animals came from the East and
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
. I was blessed with having been able to look at both the expensive collection of Doctor
Nicolaes Witsen Nicolaes Witsen (8 May 1641 – 10 August 1717; modern Dutch: ''Nicolaas Witsen'') was a Dutch statesman who was mayor of Amsterdam thirteen times, between 1682 and 1706. In 1693 he became administrator of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). I ...
, mayor of Amsterdam and director of the East Indies society, and that of Mr. Jonas Witsen, secretary of Amsterdam. Moreover, I also saw the collections of Mr. Fredericus Ruysch, doctor of medicine and professor of anatomy and botany, Mr. Livinus Vincent, and many other people. In these collections I had found innumerable other insects, but found that their origin and their reproduction is unknown, it begs the question as to how they transform, starting from caterpillars and chrysalises and so on. All this has, at the same time, led me to undertake a long-dreamed-of journey to Suriname.

Suriname and return to Netherlands

Merian arrived on 18 September or 19 September in Suriname, and met with the governor

Paulus van der Veen Paul van der Veen Does (c. 1660 - 16 August 1733, Gorcum) was from 1696 to 1706 governor of Surinam, succeeding Johan van Scharphuizen. The next twenty-five years, until his death, he was a member of the board of the Society of Surinam. He was ...

. She worked for two years,de Bray (2001), p. 48. travelling throughout the colony and sketching local animals and plants. She recorded local native names for the plants and described local uses. Unlike other Dutch naturalists, Merian was not employed by a commercial enterprise or corporation. The preface of her Suriname book does not acknowledge any patrons or sponsors of her trip. Some believe her journey may have been financed by the directors of the Dutch West India Company. In her subsequent publication on the expedition Merian criticised the actions of the colonial merchants, saying that "the people there have no desire to investigate anything like that; indeed they mocked me for seeking anything other than sugar in the country." Merian also condemned the merchants’ treatment of slaves. An enslaved person was forced to assist Merian in her research, and the labor of this person enabled interactions she had with the Amerindian and African slaves in the colony who assisted her in researching the plants and animals of Suriname. Merian also took an interest in agriculture and lamented the colonial merchants' resistance to plant or export anything other than sugar. She later showcased the vegetables and fruits that could be found in Suriname, including the pineapple. In June 1701 an illness, possibly

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

, forced her to return to the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

. Back in the Netherlands Merian opened a shop. She sold specimens she had collected and her engravings of plant and animal life in Suriname. In 1705, she published a book ''Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium'' about the insects of Suriname. In 1715, Merian suffered a stroke. Despite being partially paralysed, she continued her work. She died in Amsterdam on 13 January 1717 and was buried four days later at Leidse kerkhof. Although she is sometimes described as dying a pauper, her funeral was a middle-class one with fourteen pall-bearers. Her daughter Dorothea published ''Erucarum Ortus Alimentum et Paradoxa Metamorphosis'', a collection of her mother's work, after Merian's death.

Work

Botanical art

Merian first made a name for herself as a

botanical artist Botanical illustration is the art of depicting the form, color, and details of plant species, frequently in watercolor paintings. They must be scientifically accurate but often also have an artistic component and may be printed with a botanical ...

. In 1675, she started to publish a three-volume series, each with twelve plates depicting flowers. In 1680 she published ''Neues Blumenbuch'', combining the series. The drawings were decorative and not all were drawn based on observation. Some of the flowers in the three-volume series appear to be based on drawings by

Nicolas Robert Nicolas Robert (18 April 1614 – 25 March 1685) was a French miniaturist and engraver. He was born in Langres and died in Paris. In 1664 he was appointed as "peintre ordinaire de Sa Majesté pur la miniature" (Painter of Miniatures) to Lo ...

and her stepfather

. Merian included insects among the flowers; again she may not have observed them all herself, and some may be copies of drawings by Jacob Hoefnagel. The single flowers, wreaths, nosegays and bouquets in the three volumes would provide patterns for artists and embroiderers. Embroidery was at the time an essential part of the education that privileged young women received in Europe. Copying from other artists was an essential part of an artist's training at the time. Her compositions resemble the compartment style of the scrolling stem embroidery designs that were common in Europe at the time. Butterflies and damselflies interplayed with plants, reflecting the decorative compositions of Hoefnagel. Her subsequent ''Raupen'' books would also be used as patterns for paintings, drawings and sewing. Merian also sold hand-coloured editions of the Blumenbuch series. Merian's process of creating her art used

vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. Parchment is another term for this material, from which vellum is sometimes distinguished, when it is made from calfskin, as opposed to that made from other anima ...

which she primed with a white coat. Because of the guild system women were not allowed to paint in

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

. Merian painted with

watercolours Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...

and

gouache Gouache (; ), body color, or opaque watercolor is a water-medium paint consisting of natural pigment, water, a binding agent (usually gum arabic or dextrin), and sometimes additional inert material. Gouache is designed to be opaque. Gouache ...

instead.

Research into insects and caterpillars

Merian was one of the early naturalists to observe insects directly. Merian collected and observed live insects and created detailed drawings. In her time insects still had a reputation as "beasts of the devil" and the process of metamorphosis was largely unknown. While a handful of scholars had published empirical information on the insect, moth and butterfly life cycle, the widespread contemporary belief was that they were "born of mud" by

. Merian documented evidence to the contrary and described the life cycles of 186 insect species. Merian had started to collect insects as an adolescent and kept a study journal. Aged 13, she raised silkworms and other insects. Her interest turned to moths and butterflies, which she collected and studied. While living in Nuremberg and Frankfurt Merian would travel to the surrounding countryside to search for caterpillar larvae. She recorded their food plants, the timing of their metamorphoses, and noted the behaviour she observed. It was not unusual for naturalists to illustrate their own research, but Merian was among the early professionally trained artists to illustrate her lifelong studies and observations. She observed the life cycles of insects over decades, making detailed drawings based on live insects in their natural environment or freshly preserved specimens. This set her apart from previous artist-naturalists such as

Conrad Gesner Conrad Gessner (; la, Conradus Gesnerus 26 March 1516 – 13 December 1565) was a Swiss physician, naturalist, bibliographer, and philologist. Born into a poor family in Zürich, Switzerland, his father and teachers quickly realised his tale ...

. Her drawings and engraved plates depict moths laying eggs, or caterpillars feeding on leaves. By drawing live insects Merian could accurately depict colours, which were lost from preserved specimens. The plates she eventually published are complex compositions, based on detailed studies of individual insects she painted on vellum; many are preserved in her study journal. A comparison shows that she changed little and preserved the posture and colour of insects when placing them into the larger composition of her plates. In the course of her insect studies she also recorded and painted the reproductive cycle of flowers, from bud through fruit. As a trained artist Merian was concerned with colour accuracy and in ''Metamorphosis'' she recorded the plants from which pigments could be derived. The engravings she produced or supervised are little different from her original watercolours. She also hand-coloured some engravings. In 1679, Merian published the first volume of a two-volume series on caterpillars, with a second volume in 1683. Each volume contained 50 plates engraved and etched by Merian, with a description of the insects, moths, butterflies and their larvae she had observed. ''Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandlung und sonderbare Blumennahrung – The Caterpillars' Marvellous Transformation and Strange Floral Food'', was very popular in certain segments of high society as it was written in the vernacular, but her work was largely ignored by scientists of the time. The title page of her 1679 ''Caterpillars'' proudly proclaimed in German:

"wherein by means of an entirely new invention the origin, food and development of caterpillars, worms, butterflies, moths, flies and other such little animals, including times, places and characteristics, for naturalists, artists, and gardeners, are diligently examined, briefly described, painted from nature, engraved in copper and published independently."

Jan Goedart Johannes Goedaert (also spelled Goetaart, Goedhart, Goedaard or Jean Goedart in French) (19 March 1617 (baptized) – 15 January 1668 (buried)) was a Dutch Natural history, natur ...

had described and depicted the life stages of European moths and butterflies before her, but Merian's "invention" was the detailed study of species, their life-cycle and habitat. Goedart had documented species by depicting one adult, a pupa and one larva. Merian depicted the physical differences between male and female adults, showed wings in different positions and the different colouring on each side of the wing. She also documented the extended proboscis of feeding insects. The first plate in her 1679 ''Caterpillars'' detailed the life cycle of the

silkworm moth The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically im ...

. Starting in the right-hand corner with eggs, progressing with a hatching larva and several moults of the growing larva. Goedart had not included eggs in his images of the life stages of European moths and butterflies, because he had believed that caterpillars were generated from water. When Merian published her study of insects, it was widely believed that insects were spontaneously generated. Merian's discoveries were made independently of, and supported, the findings of Francesco Redi,

Marcello Malpighi Marcello Malpighi (10 March 1628 – 30 November 1694) was an Italian biologist and physician, who is referred to as the "Founder of microscopical anatomy, histology & Father of physiology and embryology". Malpighi's name is borne by several ph ...

and

Jan Swammerdam Jan Swammerdam (February 12, 1637 – February 17, 1680) was a Dutch biologist and microscopist. His work on insects demonstrated that the various phases during the life of an insect— egg, larva, pupa, and adult—are different forms of the ...

. While Merian's depiction of insects' life cycle was innovative in its accuracy, it was her observations on the interaction of organisms that are now regarded as a major contribution to the modern science of

ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overl ...

. The depiction of insects and their plant hosts set Merian's work apart from that of the classic by Swammerdam and

Francis Willughby Francis Willughby (sometimes spelt Willoughby, la, Franciscus Willughbeius) FRS (22 November 1635 – 3 July 1672) was an English ornithologist and ichthyologist, and an early student of linguistics and games. He was born and raised at ...

as well as the work of her countrymen and contemporaries such as Georg Rumphius. Merian was the first to show that each stage of the change from caterpillar to butterfly depended on a small number of plants for its nourishment. She noted that as a consequence the eggs were laid near these plants. In her description she commented on the environmental factors that influenced the growth of insects. On caterpillars she noted that the size of their larvae increased by the day if they had enough food. "Some then attain their full size in several weeks; others can require up to two months." Among her more significant contribution to science is the pairing of each larval lepidopteran, which she observed with a plant on which it feeds. She collected and kept caterpillars and conducted experiments to confirm her observations. She noted "caterpillars which fed on one flowering plant only, would feed on that one alone, and soon died if I did not provide it for them." She documented that some caterpillars would feed on more than one plant, but some only did so if they were deprived of their preferred host plant. Merian in her detailed studies made several other unique observations. In relation to larvae, she recorded that "many shed their skins completely three or four times". She illustrated this with a drawing showing a shed

exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton (endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...

. She also detailed the ways in which larvae formed their cocoons, the possible effects of climate on their metamorphosis and numbers, their mode of locomotion, and the fact that when caterpillars "have no food, they devour each other". Such information was recorded by Merian for specific species.

Research in Suriname

In 1699, Merian travelled to

Dutch Surinam Surinam ( nl, Suriname), also unofficially known as Dutch Guiana, was a Dutch plantation colony in the Guianas, bordered by the equally Dutch colony of Berbice to the west, and the French colony of Cayenne to the east. It later bordered Britis ...

to study and record the tropical insects. The pursuit of her work in Suriname was an unusual endeavour, especially for a woman. In general, only men received royal or government funding to travel in the colonies to find new species of plants and animals, make collections and work there, or settle. Scientific expeditions at this period of time were not common, and Merian's self-funded expedition raised many eyebrows. She succeeded, however, in discovering a whole range of previously unknown animals and plants in the interior of Suriname. Merian spent time studying and classifying her findings and described them in great detail. She not only described the insects she found, but also noted their habitat, habits and uses to

indigenous people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. Her classification of butterflies and moths is still relevant today. She used Native American names to refer to the plants, which became used in Europe:

I created the first classification for all the insects which had chrysalises, the daytime butterflies and the nighttime moths. The second classification is that of the maggots, worms, flies, and bees. I retained the indigenous names of the plants, because they were still in use in America by both the locals and the Indians.

Merian's drawings of plants, frogs, snakes, spiders, iguanas, and tropical beetles are still collected today by amateurs all over the world. The German word ''Vogelspinne'' – (a spider of the infraorder

Mygalomorphae The Mygalomorphae, or mygalomorphs, are an infraorder of spiders, and comprise one of three major groups of living spiders with over 3000 species, found on all continents except Antarctica. Many members are known as trapdoor spiders due to the ...

), translated literally as ''bird spider'' – probably has its origins in an engraving by Merian. The engraving, created from sketches drawn in Suriname, shows a large spider who had just captured a bird. In the same engraving and accompanying text Merian was the first European to describe both

army ant The name army ant (or legionary ant or ''marabunta'') is applied to over 200 ant species in different lineages. Because of their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", a huge number of ants forage simultaneously over a limi ...

s and leaf cutter ants as well as their effect on other organisms. Merian's depictions of tropical ants were subsequently cited and copied by other artists. Her depictions of the struggle among organisms predate

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

and

Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of his ...

's theories on the struggle for survival and

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

. In 1705, three years after returning from her expedition, she published ''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium''. ''Metamorphosis'' first was published at her own expense. Merian had returned from Suriname with sketches and notes. As the word spread among scholars in Amsterdam, visitors came to view her paintings of exotic insects and plants. She noted "Now that I had returned to Holland and several nature-lovers had seen my drawings, they pressured me eagerly to have them printed. They were of the opinion that this was the first and most unusual work ever painted in America." With the assistance of her daughters Johanna and Dorothea, Merian put together a series of plates. She did not make the printing plates herself this time, but hired three printmakers to do the engraving. She supervised the work closely. To pay for this work she advertised for subscribers, who were willing to give her money in advance for a hand-painted deluxe edition of the ''Metamorphosis''. Twelve subscribers paid in advance to receive the expensive hand-painted edition, while a less expensive printed edition in black and white was also published. After her death the book was reprinted in 1719, 1726 and 1730, finding a larger audience. It was published in German, Dutch, Latin and French. Merian contemplated publishing the book in English, so that she could present it to the queen of England. She mused "It is reasonable for a woman to make such a gift to a person of the same sex". But nothing came of the plan. ''Metamorphosis'' and the tropical ants Merian documented were cited by the scientists René Antoine,

August Johann Rösel von Rosenhof August Johann Rösel von Rosenhof (March 30, 1705 in Augustenburg near Arnstadt – March 27, 1759 in Nuremberg) was a German miniature painter, naturalist and entomologist. With his accurate, heavily detailed images of insects he was reco ...

Mark Catesby Mark Catesby (24 March 1683 – 23 December 1749) was an English naturalist who studied the flora and fauna of the New World. Between 1729 and 1747 Catesby published his ''Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands'', the fi ...

and George Edwards. Merian's ''Metamorphosis'' has been credited with influencing a range of naturalist illustrators. Merian also documented the medicinal use of plants and animals by the people of Suriname. She documented among others that the sap from a palm was used rubbed into itchy scalps to treat worm infections. Merian also took an interest in agriculture and among the local fruit she showcased was the

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centuri ...

. When describing the pineapple Merian cited several standard works on natural history, which first had documented the fruit, such as ''Historia Naturalis Brasilae'' by

Willem Piso Willem Piso (in Dutch Willem Pies, in Latin Gulielmus Piso, also called Guilherme Piso in Portuguese) (1611 in Leiden – 28 November 1678 in Amsterdam) was a Dutch physician and naturalist who participated as an expedition doctor in D ...

and Georg Marggraf, ''Hortus Malabaricus'' by Hendrik van Rheede, and ''Medici Amstelodamensis'' by Caspar Commelin. While the pineapple had been drawn before, Merian's became the most prominent. She provided information on how the butterflies and cockroaches affected crops and agriculture in the colony. While documenting the botany of Suriname, Merian continued to record the metamorphosis of insects. Suriname's insects were shown throughout their entire life cycle and on their plant host. A significant number of Merian's paintings combining a plant, caterpillar and butterfly are simply decorative, and make no attempt to describe the life cycle. For instance, the

Gulf fritillary The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly (''Dione vanillae'') is a bright orange butterfly in the subfamily Heliconiinae of the family Nymphalidae. That subfamily was formerly set apart as a separate family, the Heliconiidae. The Heliconiinae a ...

is shown with a vanilla plant, an orchid from the Americas, which is definitely not the host plant, and with the caterpillar of some other species. This problem recurs in many of her illustrations. An attempt to identify the insects and plants in a recent facsimile edition of her Suriname book was able to determine a number of species, although Merien usually gets the food plants wrong, makes numerous mistakes in depicting the

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines * Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts * Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...

, and usually pairs the wrong species of caterpillar with its

imago In biology, the imago (Latin for "image") is the last stage an insect attains during its metamorphosis, its process of growth and development; it is also called the imaginal stage, the stage in which the insect attains maturity. It follows the f ...

. Her drawings are part of the scientific exploration by Europeans. Early

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

of tropical plants relied on images or specimens. Following her return to Amsterdam the images she had made were used by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his Nobility#Ennoblement, ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalise ...

and others to identify one hundred or so new species. At the time there was no standardised scientific terminology to name plants and animals, so Merian used common everyday European words to describe Surinam's animals, such as silkworm or wasp. As such, she referred to butterflies as "summer birds". Linnaeus used Merian's drawings to describe 56 animals and 39 plants from Suriname, including the tarantula, in 1735 and 1753. In reference to her research, Linnaeus abbreviated her name into ''Mer.surin.'' for animals from Surinam, and ''Mer.eur.'' for European insects. Merian was the first European woman to independently go on a scientific expedition in South America. In the 19th century Ida Pfeiffer,

Alexine Tinne Alexandrine "Alexine" Pieternella Françoise Tinne (17 October 1835 – 1 August 1869) was a Dutch explorer in Africa who was the first European woman to attempt to cross the Sahara. She was an early photographer. Early life Alexandrine ...

Florence Baker Florence, Lady Baker or Florica Maria Sas; Barbara Szász; Maria Freiin von Sass; Barbara Szasz; Barbara Maria Szász; Barbara Maria Szasz (6 August 1841 – 11 March 1916) was a Hungarian-born British explorer. Born in Transylvania (then Kingdom ...

, Mary French Sheldon, Mary Henrietta Kingsley and Marianne North followed in her footsteps and explored the natural world of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Margaret Fountaine Margaret Elizabeth Fountaine (16 May 1862 – 21 April 1940), was a Victorian era, Victorian lepidopterist (a person interested in butterflies and moths), natural history illustrator, diarist, and traveller who published in The Entomologist's Rec ...

studied butterflies on five continents. Merian's scientific expedition of Surinam predated

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 17696 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. He was the younger brother of the Prussian minister, ...

's famous South America expedition by 100 years, and that of

Princess Theresa of Bavaria Princess Therese of Bavaria (german: Therese Charlotte Marianne Auguste von Bayern; 12 November 1850 – 19 December 1925) was an ethnologist, zoologist, botanist, travel writer and leader in social care. Therese was the third child and only da ...

by 200 years. Merian's publication on her expedition was later identified as a key exponent of illustrated geographical publications originating in Holland in the late 17th century, which marketed an exotic but accessible New World to Europeans.

Scientific practice in Amsterdam

When Merian moved to Amsterdam in 1691, she made the acquaintance of several naturalists. Amsterdam was the centre of the Dutch Golden Age and a nexus for science, art and trade. When settling in, Merian found support from the artist Michiel van Musscher, who lived not far away. She took in students, one being

, daughter of the anatomist and physician

Frederick Ruysch Frederik Ruysch (; March 28, 1638 – February 22, 1731) was a Dutch botanist and anatomist. He is known for developing techniques for preserving anatomical specimens, which he used to create dioramas or scenes incorporating human parts. His an ...

. Merian became an important figure among Amsterdam's botanists, scientists and collectors. Her ''Caterpillars'' books were getting noticed among the scientific community in England, she continued to breed caterpillars at home and ventured into the country side surrounding Amsterdam to study ants. Among her friends were the director of the Amsterdam Botanical Garden Caspar Commelin, the mayor of Amsterdam and president of the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

Nicolaes Witsen Nicolaes Witsen (8 May 1641 – 10 August 1717; modern Dutch: ''Nicolaas Witsen'') was a Dutch statesman who was mayor of Amsterdam thirteen times, between 1682 and 1706. In 1693 he became administrator of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). I ...

, the professor of medicine Fredericus Ruysch, and the merchant and collector Levinus Vincent. Trading ships brought back never seen before shells, plants and preserved animals. But Merian was not interested in preserving, collecting, or studying specimens. When she received a specimen from the London

apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Amer ...

James Petiver James Petiver (c. 1665 – c. 2 April 1718) was a London apothecary, a fellow of the Royal Society as well as London's informal Temple Coffee House Botany Club, famous for his specimen collections in which he traded and study of botany and entom ...

she wrote to him that she was interested in "the formation, propagation, and metamorphosis of creatures, how one emerges from the other, and the nature of their diet." Nevertheless, Merian accepted contract work. She helped to illustrate the book ''The Amboinese Curiosity Cabinet'' written by

Georg Eberhard Rumpf Georg Eberhard Rumphius (originally: Rumpf; baptized c. 1 November 1627 – 15 June 1702) was a German-born botanist employed by the Dutch East India Company in what is now eastern Indonesia, and is best known for his work ''Herbarium Amboinense' ...

. Rumpf was a naturalist and in the course of his work for the Dutch East India Company had collected Indonesian shells, rocks, fossils and sea animals. Merian, and possibly her daughter Dorothea, helped to compile illustrations of the specimens for the book, as Rumpf went blind from glaucoma and continued work on the book with assistants until 1690. It was published in 1705. The exotic specimens on display in Amsterdam may have inspired her to travel to Surinam, but only interrupted her study of European insects briefly. Merian continued her collection and observation activities, adding plates to her ''Caterpillars'' books and updating the existing plates. She republished the two volumes in Dutch in 1713 and 1714 under the title ''Der Rupsen''. She extended her studies into flies and rewrote the preface to her books to eradicate any mention of spontaneous generation. She explained that flies emerged from a caterpillar pupa, and suggested that flies could thereby be born from excrement. The 50 plates and descriptions of European insects that appear to have been intended for a third volume were published after her death by her daughters, who combined them with the 1713 editions to one large volume. A number of ''Metamorphosis'' editions were also published posthumously by her family, to which 12 additional plates were added. All but two appear to have been Merian's work. Merian was described as lively, hard working and courteous by a visiting scholar in 1711. Her house was full of drawings, insects, plants, fruit, and on the walls were her Surinam watercolours. Shortly before Merian's death, her work was seen in Amsterdam by Peter the Great. After her death in 1717, he acquired a significant number of her paintings, which to this day are kept in academic collections in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Eponyms

Long after her death a number of

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

, and two genera, were named after her. Three butterflies have been named after her, in 1905 a form of a split-banded owlet butterfly ''Opsiphanes cassina merianae''; in 1967 a subspecies of the common postman butterfly ''

Heliconius melpomene ''Heliconius melpomene'', the postman butterfly, common postman or simply postman, is a brightly colored butterfly found throughout Central and South America. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae' ...

meriana''; and in 2018 a rare butterfly '' Catasticta sibyllae'' from Panamá. The Cuban sphinx moth has been named '' Erinnyis merianae''. A

Tessaratomidae Tessaratomidae is a family of true bugs. It contains about 240 species of large bugs divided into 3 subfamilies and 56 genera. Tessaratomids resemble large stink bugs (family Pentatomidae) and are sometimes quite colorful. Most tessaratomids ar ...

bug has been named ''Plisthenes merianae''. A genus of

mantises Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They hav ...

has been named '' Sibylla''. Also the orchid bee ''

Eulaema meriana ''Eulaema meriana'' is a large-bodied bee species in the tribe Euglossini, otherwise known as the orchid bees. The species is a solitary bee and is native to tropical Central and South America. The male collects fragrances from orchid flowers, wh ...

''. The bird-eating spider '' Avicularia merianae'' was named in her honour, referencing her research on spiders. The spider '' Metellina merianae'' was named after her in 2017. An Argentine tegu lizard has been named '' Salvator merianae''. A toad was named ''Rhinella merianae''. A snail was named ''Coquandiella meriana''. The Madagascan population of the

African stonechat The African stonechat or common stonechat (''Saxicola torquatus'') is a species of the Old World flycatcher family (Muscicapidae), inhabiting sub-Saharan Africa and adjacent regions. Like the other chats, it was long assigned to the thrush f ...

bird was given the name ''Saxicola torquatus sibilla''. A genus of flowering plants was named '' Meriania''. An iris-like plant was given the name ''

Watsonia meriana Watsonia can refer to: * ''Watsonia'' (gastropod), a genus of sea snails in the family Caecidae * ''Watsonia'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants in the iris family * ''Watsonia'' (journal), now the ''New Journal of Botany'' * Watsonia, Victor ...

''.

Modern appreciation

Merian is considered a saint by the God's Gardeners, a fictional religious sect that is the focus of Margaret Atwood's 2009 novel ''

The Year of the Flood ''The Year of the Flood'' is a novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood, the second book of her dystopian trilogy, released on September 22, 2009, in Canada and the United States, and on September 7, 2009, in the United Kingdom. The novel was ...

''. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, the work of Merian was re-evaluated, validated, and reprinted. Her portrait was printed on the 500 DM note before Germany converted to the euro. Her portrait has also appeared on a 0.40 DM stamp, released on 17 September 1987, and many schools are named after her. In the late 1980s the

Archiv Archiv Produktion is a classical music record label of German origin. It originated in 1949 as a classical label for the Deutsche Grammophon, Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft (DGG), and in 1958 Archiv was established as a subsidiary of DGG, spec ...

imprint of the

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States ...

label issued a series of new recordings of

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

's piano works performed on period instruments, and featuring Merian's floral illustrations. She was honoured with a

Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...

on 2 April 2013 to mark her 366th birth anniversary. The renewed scientific and artistic interest in her work was triggered in part by a number of scholars who examined collections of her works, such as the one in

Rosenborg Castle Rosenborg Castle ( da, Rosenborg Slot) is a renaissance castle located in Copenhagen, Denmark. The castle was originally built as a country summerhouse in 1606 and is an example of Christian IV's many architectural projects. It was built in the D ...

, Copenhagen. In 2005, a modern

research vessel A research vessel (RV or R/V) is a ship or boat designed, modified, or equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel but others require a dedicated ...

named RV ''Maria S. Merian'' was launched at

Warnemünde (, literally ''Mouth of the Warnow'') is a seaside resort and a district of the city of Rostock in Mecklenburg, Germany. It is located on the Baltic Sea and, as the name implies, at the estuary of the river Warnow. is one of the world's busi ...

, Germany. In 2016, Merian's ''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium'' was re-published with updated scientific descriptions and, in June 2017, a symposium was held in her honour in Amsterdam. In March 2017, the

Lloyd Library and Museum Lloyd Library and Museum is an independent research library located in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Its core subject and collection focus is medicinal plants, with emphasis on botany, pharmacy, natural history, alternative medicine, and the history ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

hosted "Off the Page", an exhibition rendering many of Merian's illustrations as 3D sculptures with preserved insects, plants, and taxidermy specimens. The Argentine black and white tegu (''Salvator merianae''), a type of large lizard, was named in honour of Merian after its discovery and classification.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). "Tupinambis merianae". The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 175. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5.

Daughters

Today, while Merian has experienced reinvigorated fame in the eyes of the art and science communities, some of her work has now been re-attributed to her daughters

Johanna Johanna is a feminine name, a variant form of Joanna that originated in Latin in the Middle Ages, including an -h- by analogy with the Latin masculine name Johannes. The original Greek form ''Iōanna'' lacks a medial /h/ because in Greek /h/ cou ...

and

Dorothea Dorothea (also spelled Dorothée, Dorotea or other variants) is a female given name from Greek (Dōrothéa) meaning "God's Gift". It may refer to: People * Dorothea Binz (1920–1947), German concentration camp officer executed for war cr ...

; Sam Segal has re-attributed 30 of 91 folios in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

Gallery

File:De Europische Insecten Merian Bernard.jpg File:Duroia eriopila by Merian.jpg File:Duroia sp00.jpg File:Fulgora.jpg File:Guavenzweig.jpg File:Illustration of a Caiman crocodilus and an Anilius scytale (1701–1705) by Maria Sibylla Merian.jpg File:Joseph Mulder etching 1.jpg File:Merian Metamorphosis VI.jpg File:Spondia purpurea Merian.jpg File:Merian Metamorphosis LX.jpg File:Metamorphosis of a Butterfly Merrian 1705.jpg File:Merian Metamorphosis XLVIII.jpg File:Merian Metamorphosis XXVII.jpg File:Merian-grafic-senkenberg hg.jpg File:Thysania agrippina par Merian.gif File:Wasserhyazinthe.jpg File:Maria Merian Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium MIA P18717.jpg File:Butterfly on a hibiscus plant.jpg, Butterfly on a hibiscus plant

Bibliography

* ''Blumenbuch. Volume 1.'' 1675 * ''Blumenbuch. Volume 2.'' 1677 * ''Neues Blumenbuch. Volume 3.'' 1680 * ''Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandlung und sonderbare Blumennahrung.'' Volume 1, 1679 * ''Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandlung und sonderbare Blumennahrung.'' Volume 2, 1683 * ''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium.'' 1705

References

External links

* ''Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium'': *
''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium''
images at website sponsored by Johns Hopkins University *
Online version of ''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium'' from GDZ
*
''Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium''
(1705) – full digital facsimile from the

Linda Hall Library The Linda Hall Library is a privately endowed American library of science, engineering and technology located in Kansas City, Missouri, sitting "majestically on a urban arboretum." It is the "largest independently funded public library of scien ...

''Das kleine Buch der Tropenwunder : kolorierte Stiche''
from the

Digital Library of the Caribbean The Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) is an international digital library operated collaboratively by the contributing partners. Partners Current partners continue to grow on a regular basis and are listed on thdLOC Partner Page Partners in ...

Online version of ''Over de voortteeling en wonderbaerlyke veranderingen der Surinaemsche Insecten'' from GDZ

Online version of ''Erucarum ortus, alimentum et paradoxa metamorphosis'' from GDZ

The Flowering Genius of Maria Sibylla Merian
Ingrid Rowland on Merian from ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...

''
''Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandlung''
images from collection at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Gaedike, R.; Groll, E.K. & Taeger, A. 2012: Bibliography of the entomological literature from the beginning until 1863 : online database – version 1.0 – Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut.
*
Maria Sibylla Merian on the RKD website

The Maria Sibylla Merian Society
with links to digitized works from Maria Sibylla Merian and digital sources * Th
Kleps-Hok Collection on Maria Sibylla Merian
at The National Museum of Women in the Arts *
The Woman Whose Paintings Changed Science Forever
(April 28, 2022) video via BBC Ideas {{DEFAULTSORT:Merian, Maria Sibylla 1647 births 1717 deaths 17th-century German women writers 18th-century German women writers 17th-century German women artists 17th-century German women scientists 18th-century German women artists Animal artists Botanical illustrators Dutch expatriates in Suriname Dutch Golden Age painters Dutch lepidopterists German Baroque painters German lepidopterists German people of Swiss descent Maria Sibylla Natural history of Suriname Scientific illustrators Scientists from Frankfurt Women botanists Women entomologists Dutch women painters