Koe, drinkend uit een plas 1851

"Koe, drinkend uit een plas" (Cow drinking from a puddle) is an etching by Dutch artist Jacobus Cornelis Gaal, created in 1851. This small-scale print, currently housed in the Rijksmuseum, depicts a single cow in a naturalistic pose, its head bent low as it drinks from a puddle. The artist’s meticulous attention to detail is evident in the rendering of the cow's fur and the rippling surface of the water, while the simple composition and muted tones create a sense of tranquility. Gaal's work, often featuring animals in their natural environments, is characteristic of the Dutch tradition of animal painting, a genre that found renewed popularity in the 19th century.