Artist

Jean-Baptiste Adanson

Jean-Baptiste Adanson is an Orientalism artist. 1 work is cataloged here, principally at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Jean-Baptiste Adanson spent years chasing the Gerbouh, a giant Nile rat that barely anyone outside Senegal had ever drawn right. His watercolors hide in plain sight, each whisker and paw placed like a secret someone meant to keep. Why bother?

Because these sheets are the only close-ups we have of a creature that was already vanishing by 1790. Search for Rat d’Egypte apellé en Arabe Gérbouh; the yellowed paper and tiny wet brushstrokes will tell you more than any stuffed museum case could.

Works by Jean-Baptiste Adanson

Collections represented

Catalog records compiled from museum open-access collections; the artworks shown are in the public domain. Spotted an error in this record? Tell us.