Elephant, Camel, and Two Monkeys

This image of exotic creatures is one of thirteen surviving drawings that Barlow made to illustrate a model book of animals he published beginning in 1659. The artist employs loose, energetic pen strokes to delineate the wrinkled skin of the elephant, flowing hair of the camel, short fur of the monkeys, and pointed muzzles of the two civet cats, at bottom right. It is highly unlikely that Barlow observed all these animals from life. Records show that an elephant was not displayed in London until 1675, and this example’s strangely ribbed trunk appears to have been based on an earlier print (2022).