Georychus capensis (Cape mole-rat) Possibly 1777 - 1781

Robert Jacob Gordon made this drawing of a Cape mole-rat with pencil and watercolour. Gordon was a military man in the Dutch East India Company at the Cape, but he was also interested in natural history and his drawings reflect that interest. The image shows a mole-rat, an animal endemic to Southern Africa, on a small wooden platform. This could be a drawing of a specimen that Gordon encountered during his travels in the Cape, but note that the animal is posed. What does it mean to place a wild animal on display like this? Such images are part of the scientific culture of the 18th Century. Historians explore prints, manuscripts, and specimen collections to understand the Western scientific study of the natural world. Gordon's drawing is more than just a picture; it is a window into the history of science and colonialism.