Posted
on April 2, 2014
She
lived in Germany and the Netherlands, and she traveled for two years
in Suriname, in South America. She was an artist and a scientist. –
And all of that is so much more remarkable because she lived in the
17th and 18th Centuries!
Born
on this date in 1647 in Frankfurt, in what is now Germany but was
then the Holy Roman Empire, Maria Sibylla Merian was fascinated by
insects as a child. She would often collect caterpillars to be able
to watch their metamorphosis into butterflies and moths.
She
also drew and painted as a child, encouraged by her artist
stepfather. Naturally, she drew and painted insects.
As
a married woman living in Germany, Merian illustrated plants and
animals for books and catalogs, and she also gave drawing lessons to
rich young ladies. That was a pretty nice gig for her, because she
had access to fine gardens – and therefore plenty of insects!
In
the late 1600s, Merian moved to Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, and
divorced her husband. She was able to study some fine insect
collections, but she wondered what the gorgeous butterflies and moths
looked like as caterpillars and chrysalises. She did a bold and
uncommon thing: she traveled with her youngest daughter to South
America to study the plants and animals in the Dutch colony of
Suriname.
Merian
spent two years in Suriname. She criticized the Dutch planters'
treatment of the native peoples and of African slaves – but she was
in naturalist heaven! She not only sketched local animals and plants,
she also recorded their Native American names and described the
plants' uses by locals. Unfortunately, Merian's expedition ended when
she fell ill with malaria.
When
she returned to the Netherlands, Merian was able to sell specimens of
insects she had collected, and to publish illustrations of the plant
and animal life of Suriname. In 1705 she published a volume about
just the insects of Suriname.
It
may have been partly because of Merian's unusual interest in insects.
Insects in general did not have a great reputation—they were
despised by most and were often called names like “beasts of the
devil.” Most male scientists were drawn to study larger, grander
creatures, and those who studied and collected insects tended to
study the dead, preserved bodies of the creatures.
Instead
of just studying dead insects, Merian observed live ones out in
nature. She even raised insects and studied them throughout their
life cycle. She learned details of insect metamorphosis that were
largely unknown before. She gathered evidence that insects were NOT
“born of mud,” as most people believed. She described insect
behavior and the impact of one species on others. Also, because of
her trip to Suriname, Merian was the first European to describe and
illustrate important insects such as leaf-cutter ants, army ants, and
birdeater tarantulas.
The
“Father of Entomology,” William Kirby, wasn't born until more
than four decades after Merian's death. What I want to know is, why
isn't Merian considered the “Mother of Entomology”?
Merian's
illustrations are still valued by collectors today, and her
classifications, descriptions, and illustrations are still relevant.
She has been honored with her picture on postage stamps and money,
her name on a research vessel and on several schools, and even a
Google doodle!
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