Minneapolis Institute of Art
Snake, Caterpillar, Butterfly, and Insects on Plant
After Maria Sibylla Merian; Engraver: Joseph Mulder; Printer: Cassave ?
- Date
- 18th century
- Medium
- Hand-colored etching and engraving
- Department
- European Art
- Institution
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
Here Merian drew the root of the cassava plant, Manihot esculenta (Crantz). She noted that the Suriname natives grated the starchy root, pressed out the juice, then placed the root on a hot plate and baked it like a rusk. This process made the root palatable and eliminated (or at least safely reduced) the poisonous compounds. Should a man or an animal drink the extracted juice cold, he or it dies an extremely painful death, she said. The snake is the Amazon Tree Boa, Corallus hortulanus (Linnaeus); its swollen stomach indicates that it had recently eaten. Netherlands, Europe
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