The Animal Creation
Wild and domesticate animals from the four continents gather here peacefally near a watering hole. In the foreground an elephant and a giraffe at right, and a leopard and a stag at left flank a lion with a sheep resting its foreleg across the lion's paw. Behind at right are a hyena and a donkey, then a zebra, moose, horse, antelope, fox and camels. At left we also find an armidillo, wolf, kangaroo and American buffalo, then a tiger, boar, bear, tapir and monkeys. In the center before the lake are a mouse, goat and rabbits. Beyond the lake are a crocodile, water buffalo and warthog, and various kinds of birds, including a peacock, ostrich, turkey and eagle. Animals from all parts of the earth are included in this scene which echoes Isaiah 11.6, a prophetic vision of a messianic time of peace when: "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together." Artistic responses to this verse traditionally pair a lion with a lamb.
Artwork Details
- Title: The Animal Creation
- Publisher: Currier & Ives (American, active New York, 1857–1907)
- Date: 1875
- Medium: Hand-colored lithograph
- Dimensions: Image: 8 11/16 × 12 13/16 in. (22 × 32.5 cm)
Sheet: 11 13/16 × 15 7/8 in. (30 × 40.4 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Bequest of Adele S. Colgate, 1962
- Object Number: 63.550.338
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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Currier & Ives
1884
Currier & Ives
1859
Currier & Ives
1857–71
Currier & Ives
1857–71
Currier & Ives
1868–78
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