Hamster - Scattaglia / Alessandri 1775

📜 Description
Antique etching titled “Criceto”, by P. Scattaglia / I. Alessandri, published by C. Palese in Venice between 1771 and 1775. The plate shows a hamster in a natural setting, placed among rocks and vegetation, with the printed title “CRICETO” below the image. Taken from “Animali quadrupedi dal naturale dissegnati, incisi e miniati”, this zoological print combines naturalistic observation, decorative composition and eighteenth-century scientific illustration.

📚 Art-historical note
The work belongs to the Venetian tradition of illustrated natural history, in which animals were represented from life and arranged within landscape settings. Scattaglia and Alessandri’s series documents quadrupeds through etching and hand-coloured visual presentation, intended for both study and collection.

🧾 Technical sheet
Type: antique print / zoological plate
Author: P. Scattaglia / I. Alessandri
Publisher: C. Palese
Place: Venice
Date: 1771–1775
Technique: etching
Subject / Title: Criceto
Sheet size: 34.5 × 49 cm
Plate size: 27 × 36 cm
Inscriptions: title “CRICETO”; plate number “CLVI”

🔍 Condition Report
Very good overall condition, with occasional foxing consistent with age. Blank verso.