Book competition

This week’s competition prize is The Paper Zoo: 500 years of Animals in Art by Charlotte Sleigh, published by British Library Publishing (£25). Click here for your chance to win.

The Paper Zoo traces the varied and vital role of natural history illustration in science and art since the 15th century. Images from giants of the genre – such as the birds of John J. Audubon, or the insects of Maria Sibylla Merian – accompany less familiar but equally intriguing illustrations from manuscripts, journals, and rare printed books. Together, these works represent a collection of nature’s wonders. Birds, butterflies, insects, mammals, reptiles, and fish were immortalised in print; pests and curiosities were wondered at; microorganisms made monsters. All these and more can be found in the pages of this lavishly illustrated homage to the historical collaboration between art and science.

For your chance to win simply answer the following question and submit your details here before midday on 21 October.

Which Swiss naturalist’s 5-volume Historiae Animalium, an illustrated compendium of animals, was published between 1551 and 1587?

This competition closes at midday on 21 October.

For our last competition prize we offered Winifred Knights (1899–1947) by Sacha Llewellyn, published by Lund Humphries (£40).

What is the name of Winifred Knights’ most famous painting, for which she won the Prix de Rome?

Answer: The Deluge, 1920

Congratulations to the winner, Rachel Bonness.