1750 Italian Zoological Print of an American Bison

This is a c. 1750 zoological print of an American bison by an unknown artist. The bison itself, while remaining reasonably accurate in its overall appearance, bears what can only be described as a goofy expression on its face and has its tongue sticking out of its mouth. The fur on its head is parted down the center and is rather shaggy. This combination of goofy expression and center-parted shaggy hair led us to compare this bison with a member of one of the greatest comedy trios of all time, the Three Stooges, and we have nicknamed him 'Moe' after Moe Howard. The Italian text below the image presents many of the bison's unique attributes and states that it lives in the western portions of North America from Louisiana to the Arctic Circle.

Publication History and Census

This print was created by an unknown artist and published c. 1750. An example is part of the collection at the Library and Archives Canada. We have also located an uncolored example that is said to have been published in Domenico Gazzadi and Antonio Bashieri's Zoologia morale.