The German painter and printmaker created the Rhinoceros based on a written description and brief sketch by an unknown artist of an Indian rhinoceros. Durer never saw the actual rhinoceros. Not a single life specimen had been brought to Europe since Roman times, until 1577, when an Indian rhinoceros, named Abada, arrived at the court of Sebastian of Portugal in, being later inherited by Philip II of Spain around 1580.
Durer’s woodcut is not an accurate representation of a rhinoceros. He depicts an animal with hard plates that cover its body like sheets of armour, with a gorget at the throat, a solid-looking breastplate, and rivets along the seams. He also places a small twisted horn on its back, and gives it scaly legs and saw-like rear quarters. None of these features is present in a real rhinoceros. Despite its anatomical inaccuracies, Durer’s woodcut became very popular in Europe and was copied many times in the following three centuries. It was regarded by Westerners as a true representation of a rhinoceros into the late 18th century.
The rhinoceros’ body could be been divided into a kit of distinct armour pieces. The parts of this fantastic animal puzzle are collaged with unpredictable outcomes in the following images, describing imaginary specimens, objects and anatomical/architectural details. Similar to Durer’s woodcut the forms of the rhinoceros and the collaged fantasy animals are framed with outlines that visually hold the pieces together. The experiments have lost the completeness of the original print to let the viewer’s imagination add pieces to the picture.
The Rhinoceros details
The Rhinoceros landscapes
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