Butterfly on Flowering Branch with Shadows , Fine 19th Century Watercolor cribbage board Such a gorgeous thing

Such a gorgeous thing

It seems a bit more like ceramic than plaster (and is quite heavy)

early to it)--suggesting it indeed was used as an offering

which slides out to reveal a pretty blue belle

even better when it’s attached to a ball in cage

Butterfly on Flowering Branch with Shadows , Fine 19th Century Watercolor cribbage board Such a gorgeous thingA couple more today from a group of beautifully executed 19th c. ink and watercolor butterflies, likely done by a young woman, 1870s or so I would guess and this one as much a botanical study as a butterfly portrait. Feels to me almost akin to a Mapplethorpe photograph of a flower quite a suggestive, velvety red orchid like bloom looking poised to swallow that butterfly! Quite finely done, with pale ink wash shadows enhancing its sense of realism and