Rhabdomys pumilio (Four-striped grass mouse) after 1786

Robert Jacob Gordon made this watercolor of a four-striped grass mouse, sometime before his death in 1795. Gordon was a Dutch explorer, soldier, and naturalist of Scottish descent, who commanded the Dutch garrison at Cape Town in the late 18th century. The image is a naturalistic study, and the inclusion of a handwritten description below the image in Dutch gives the work a scientific quality. The image is part of a larger historical context of European exploration and colonization, particularly the Dutch presence in South Africa. As an explorer, Gordon documented the landscapes, flora, and fauna of the regions he traversed. To fully understand this image, researchers could consult Gordon's journals, maps, and other visual materials to reconstruct the historical context of its creation and the ways in which images like these played a role in European expansion. Ultimately, this image reminds us that the meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.