Plate 05; Stag Beetle by Joris Hoefnagel - Postcard

Plate 5: Stag Beetle, c. 1575/1590s, by Flemish artist Joris Hoefnagel presents a meticulously observed stag beetle within a delicate golden oval frame. The insect is shown against a pale parchment ground, with particular attention given to its powerful mandibles, segmented body, fine legs and curved antennae.

The work belongs to Hoefnagel's remarkable series Animalia Rationalia et Insecta (Ignis), created around the late 16th century. Hoefnagel (1542–1600) was a Flemish artist celebrated for highly detailed studies of nature, including insects, animals and plants. His work occupies an important place in the early history of natural-history illustration, where close observation of the natural world was combined with extraordinary artistic precision.

The stag beetle is surrounded by a restrained parchment background and enclosed by a fine gold line, giving the small study the character of both a scientific observation and a precious Renaissance miniature. The red inscription SCARABEI VMBRA appears above the insect, while the composition's careful details reveal Hoefnagel's fascination with the structure and beauty of the natural world.

The original is recorded by the National Gallery of Art as watercolor and gold paint on parchment, with a page size of approximately 14.3 × 18.4 cm. This fine art postcard brings a remarkable piece of Renaissance-era nature illustration into contemporary correspondence, making it especially suitable for postcrossing, snail mail, postcard collecting and lovers of natural history, insects and historic scientific illustration.

Density -350 g/m

Glossy lamination on the front side of the postcard.

Size - 10*15cm