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Object Timeline

1901

  • We acquired this object.

2015

2016

2025

  • You found it!

Drawing, The Collecting of Bitumen [above]; Catching Night Moths [below]

This is a Drawing. It was created by Jan van der Straet, called Stradanus and subject: Pliny the Elder. It is dated 1596 or before and we acquired it in 1901. Its medium is pen and brown ink, brush and wash on laid paper. It is a part of the Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design department.

It is credited Museum purchase through gift of various donors.

Its dimensions are

13.9 × 9.5 cm (5 1/2 × 3 3/4 in.)

It is inscribed

Recto, at center: lembuta sopra 4 ponti e fane 2 in terra [...] piu bassa

Cite this object as

Drawing, The Collecting of Bitumen [above]; Catching Night Moths [below]; Jan van der Straet, called Stradanus (Flemish, 1523–1605); Subject: Pliny the Elder (Roman, 23 - 79 CE); Netherlands; pen and brown ink, brush and wash on laid paper; 13.9 × 9.5 cm (5 1/2 × 3 3/4 in.); Museum purchase through gift of various donors; 1901-39-2638

This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://www-6.collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18117757/ |title=Drawing, The Collecting of Bitumen [above]; Catching Night Moths [below] |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=23 March 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>