Mouse, Rose, and Butterfly
2024 © Maxim Tabachnik
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Mouse, Rose, and ButterflyJan Brueghel the Elder

250
Painted in oil on copper (1605–11), this miniature still life (8 × 11.5 cm) captures a delicate mouse, roses, caterpillar, and butterfly with scientific precision and poetic balance. Commissioned by Cardinal Federico Borromeo, the work reflects Brueghel’s fascination with nature’s fragility and quiet complexity.