The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1913-01-24

err similar print was produced fourteen years
after bmy the Nurnberg engraver, Johann Sib
macher, who etched nine other sporting plates
Then follow. in rapid succession. half a dozen
portraits by Tempesta, the pupil Of Stradanus.
one of which prints we reproduce. 1t shows in
what awe the gigantic wild bull was held, for It
depicts a Misunderstanding machine wherewith
the bull coulo be attacked and brought down
Tempesta's pictures need not be taken seriously,
for his Roman studio" was nothing but a work
shop where apprentice hands turned out a vast
mass OF prints OF little or no value In an enquiry
of this sort. His English contemporary of the
pen, Edward Topsell, in his illustrated natural
history hodge-podge called the Historic of Foure-
Footed faastes' 1901 only added TO the exist
Ing confusion. "A Bison he says, lis a beast
very strange as may appear by his figure pre-.
fixed which by many authors is taken for Urus,
some for a Bugle or wild oxe, others, for a
Rangifer, and many for the least Tarantus or
Buffe.' And, to show that he really meant what
he said, he afixes Il picture Of what Is unmistak.
ably a reindeer! Fortunately, however, he adds.
ae pictures Of the bison and OF the aurochs, re.
pleas Of the two prints by Hirschvogel out OF
Herberstein's "Rerum Moscoviticarum Common.
tarii, " which, as we have already mentioned, are
among the most correct representations pub
lished at q period when the aurochs still existed
In England, the belif that tn aurochs was a
bigon-like creature continued throughout the
eighteenth century. The picture taken from Sam.
uel ClaTkes Julius Caesar" published in 1912,
shows what extraordinary ignorance still pre-
vailed. the animal with antlers like an inverted
umbrella being a bison. or Bos germanus, and
the beast In the center an aurochs. The graver
of Holzab Of Zurich, continues the misconcep-
ton; indeed, goes one better, for the bison ia
here turned into an American aurochs." OF
numerous other Illustrations Of our two beasts,
We have not the space TO speak at length. One
CT the most Characteristic Of the latter type Is
the so.called Hamilton Smith picture OF the au.
rochs. This is a painting. dating, It is believed,
from the first quarter Of the sixteenth century,
discovered in Augsburg not quite a hundred
years ago. This painting has mysterfously dis.
appeared. but an accurate copy was made, For
the first modern" picture Of the bison that ap.
peareG in England we have also to 20 to Ger.
man sources. and, strangely enough, to the same
city. for II was Augsburg's most famous animal
painter, Ridinger G69T.1760, who drew the first
Hielike picture. A cOuntTyman OF his. one ]. s.
Muller who lived many years In London. cngrav.
ed, in l75s. a fine set Of plates representing wild
animals after Kidinger's drawings from nature,
Among them is one Of the bison, called BY him
the buffalo. and underneath is a lengthy and
fairly correct description In English, which he
also copied from Ridinger. But this and other
isolated efforts have not entirely prevented tho
dissemination Of the old mistake. for living au.
thorities still tell US. quite seriously, that they
have erased aurochs.