Scientific Illustration

letmypeopleshow:

Anty Matter:

A painting of an anteater, formerly attributed to the studio of Antón Raphael Mengs, is now thought to be by Goya. Evidently the picture was painted when a giant anteater, native to the Americas, was brought to Spain for the first time, and King Carlos III commissioned its portrait. The background, experts say, is similar to the landscapes in other Goya paintings. La osa hormiguera de Su Majestad is housed in Spain’s Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. 

(via compendium-of-beasts)