Of Tropical Fish and Mermaids: Louis Renard's "Poissons, Ecrevisses, et Crabes"

Saturday, September 29, 2012 at 8:00am to 5:00pm

Mann Library, Top Shelf Gallery, 1st floor Cornell University Mann Library, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA

First published in 1718, when little was known about East Indian ocean life, Louis Renard’s book presented to his readers a fantastic array of sea creatures thought to be found in the region, many drawn from actual specimens with a surprising level of accuracy, others representing completely imagined forms. Highlighting a treasure from Jay ('77) and Eileen ('76, '78) Walker's private Library of the History of Human Imagination, the select illustrations in this display in Mann Library's Top Shelf Gallery provide colorful insight into the history of human perceptions and representations of nature.