Anna maria sibylla merian bio

Main achievements: Documentation of butterfly metamorphosis.

Maria sibylla merian discoveries

Scientific illustration.

Maria Sibylla Merian was a German-born naturalist and scientific illustrator, a descendant of the Frankfurt branch of the Swiss Merian family, founders of one of Europe's largest publishing houses in the 17th century.

Merian received her artistic training from her stepfather, Jacob Marrel, a student of the still life painter Georg Flegel. She remained in Frankfurt until 1670, relocating subsequently to Nuremberg, Wieuwerd (1685), where she stayed in a Labadist community till 1691, and Amsterdam.

Merian published her first book of natural illustrations, titled Neues Blumenbuch, in 1675 at age 28.

In 1699, following eight years of painting and studying, and on the encouragement of Corneli