Aepyornis Hunt

XVIII century
Oil on canvas
53.5 x 69 cm; with frame: 62.5 x 77 cm

Aepyornis was one of the largest flightless birds ever exists on earth; endemic to Madagascar, it was hunted for its plumage, its meat and its eggs, to the point of causing its extinction. The hunters in the painting are in arabesque clothing: in fact, the Arabs had frequent relationships with the Malagasy royal dynasties.

01-06-009