Beached Whale Images in Sixteenth-Century Antwerp

This book examines a small group of sixteenth-century Antwerp artworks depicting the butchering of beached whales, revealing how these images represent a pivotal moment in European attitudes toward nature.

Ryan E. Gregg is Associate Professor of Art History at Webster University. Specializing in sixteenth-century city views, his publications include City Views in the Habsburg and Medici Courts (2018) and articles on Anton van den Wyngaerde's working methods, his Panorama of Walcheren, and other topics.

Introduction. 1. Magnus, Gessner, and the Codification of an Iconography 2. The Antwerp Flensing Group 3. Ancient and Medieval Whales: Moralizing Monstrous Marine Mammals 4. Hunted and Stranded Whales: Dominion over Nature 5. Beached Whales: Natural Marvel and Dutch Symbol 6. Conclusions. Bibliography