This beautiful collection of early 19th-century natural history works are connected to the Glegg family of Withington Hall, Cheshire. The group comprises butterfly, bird and shell studies, along with botanical subjects. Together they represent the burgeoning interest in the natural world at this time and the drive to classify natural phenomena into taxonomic schemes.
One picture in the group depicts the Mimosa plant, with an accompanying verse from 'The Botanic Garden' by the English physician, natural philosopher and poet Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802), 'On the Sensitive Plant'. Darwin's writings exemplify the interconnectedness of literature, natural philosophy, art and social theory at this time. Natural philosophy was frequently presented in a stylised literary form, and the visual and literary arts were often grounded in a sophisticated awareness of the natural sciences of the day; poets were philosophers, and philosophers poets. Erasmus Darwin's writings were ultimately influential on the later evolutionary theories of his grandson, Charles Darwin.
Other works in the group are signed J.J. Schenck, with German inscription. This is likely to be connected with the Schenck family of Siegen, which included the entomologist Adolph Schenck (1803–1878) and the botanist Johann Heinrich Rudolf Schenck (1860–1927). Adolph's father was Johann Jacob Schenck, and brother was Karl Ludwig Johann Jakob Schenck. Adolphe Schenck amassed an important collection of entomological specimens and was a charismatic teacher, initiating the creation of a Botanical Garden at Dillenburg.
Additionally in the collection there are butterfly studies with the inscription 'Mademoiselle Sommé d'anvers'. It seems likely that the artist was connected to Claude Louis Sommé (1772–1855) who was chief surgeon at the St Elisabeth hospital of Antwerp. Sommé was responsible for the creation of the Botanic Garden of Antwerp, close to the hospital, cultivating plants that supported his teachings in external pathology at the école de médecine.
