Broadside with 36 images of quadrupeds (animals)

Art Historical Context

This striking broadside, created in 1862 by Spanish printmaker Juan Llorens, presents thirty-six wood-engraved images of quadrupeds on a single sheet. Measuring roughly 17 by 13 inches, the print gathers familiar and exotic animals—lions, elephants, horses, and cats—into a lively visual catalog. Produced during an era when affordable prints reached wide audiences, such broadsides often served both decorative and educational purposes, bringing the wonders of the natural world into homes and classrooms. Wood engraving, the medium employed here, allowed for crisp, detailed lines that reproduced well on inexpensive paper. Llorens’s arrangement invites viewers to compare forms, sizes, and postures, turning the sheet into a miniature menagerie. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Max G. Wildnauer Fund, the work exemplifies the nineteenth-century fascination with illustrated natural history and the democratic reach of printmaking. Today it offers a charming glimpse into how people once encountered animals through popular imagery rather than travel or zoos.