Ceylonese Jungle

Hermann von Königsbrunn

1851–65 · Pen and black ink. Framing line in pen and black ink · Drawings and Prints

Tight, precise pen strokes fill the sheet, forming a lush array of vegetation. In 1852 Königsbrunn traveled with two biologists to Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, to study the island’s flora. During their ten-month stay, the artist produced drawings that he later developed into intricate compositions like this one, reproduced as an engraving in 1865. By this time, some of Ceylon’s tropical forests had been exploited for ebony and cleared for coffee plantations, a result of European colonial rule.

Artist

Hermann von Königsbrunn

Date

1851–65

Medium

Pen and black ink. Framing line in pen and black ink

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Harry G. Sperling Fund, 2009