Selected from the ancient art and artifacts of an international array of museum collections, this spectacular volume offers a unique collection of unusual animal motifs from Prussia, Egypt, Persia, China, Germany, Sweden, and other regions. Chosen for their unconventionality, frankness, and decorative qualities, these images are simple rather than sophisticated. Their timeless appeal makes them especially attractive to contemporary designers, tattoo artists, crafters, and other seekers of creative inspiration.
The tremendous diversity of styles ranges from majestic Byzantine lions to playful Costa Rican crocodiles. Featured illustrations include a fifteenth-century Gothic shield depicting a stag, an image of a bull from Assyrian ceramics, horses from the earthenware of ancient Greece and Egypt, creatures from the Bayeux Tapestry, and other rare animal motifs.