A butterfly, moths, and insects alight on or around a twig with green leaves and straw-yellow berries in this horizontal painting. The background is putty gray, and the objects and insects cast pale shadows to our right. The twig angles slightly upward from left to right in the center of the composition. Wide green leaves sprout from its top edge and three clusters of gleaming berries rest along the table closer to us. A butterfly perches on a leaf to the left on the twig, its wings spread and the antennae touching the leaf. The edges of the wings are charcoal grey with tan spots, and closer…
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Study of Butterfly and Insects

painter Jan van Kessel the Elder (Flemish, 1626 - 1679)

c. 1655

Medium
oil on copper
Classification
Painting
Dimensions
overall: 11 x 14.8 cm (4 5/16 x 5 13/16 in.)
Culture
Flemish
Museum
National Gallery of Art, CNE-B
Credit line
Gift of John Dimick
Rights
Public domain (NGA Open Access, CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Little Ones profiles and older: it shows gentle subjects for the very young. How works are placed

View at the National Gallery of Art