Yongle was the third emperor of the Ming dynasty in China (1402–1424), and under him a Chinese fleet went around the world in what was certainly the most dramatic burst of exploration in the medieval times. The fleet, under Admiral …
As we were crossing the Orleans gallery, which was still very lively despite the late hour, I exclaimed:
« Can you imagine the impression the magnificence of the Palais-Royal makes on a foreigner? There he discovers a profusion of …
The verticalization of the piano was nothing new. Invented around 1740 in Italy and Germany, it was certainly inspired by the clavicytherium (with plucked strings). Towards the end of the 18th century, the English returned to the concept of a …
From its journey from Marseille to Paris in the spring of 1827, the Giraffe left its mark in the form of weather vanes. I know two of them that have withstood the passage of time: one on the roof of …
Described by his son Jean-Marie Aynaud as a humanist; art lover with an astonishing flair, and passionate “imagier” (collector of images), Adolphe AYNAUD (1887-1971) gathered during his life a splendid iconographic collection concerning Zarafa. In the “biographical chronicle” devoted to …
Most of the historical images presented on this site come from the collection of Adolphe AYNAUD (1887-1971). Let his son Jean-Marie Aynaud evoke the passion of his father:
“The arrival of the first giraffe in France in 1827, a gift …
Preserved in the Graphic Arts Department of the Louvre Museum, this drawing by the painter Théodore Chassériau, entitled “Turk holding a giraffe by a rope, another Turk behind”, bearing the words “La Girafe qui fait courir tout Paris” (The giraffe …
Some ignorant people doubt that the naturalized giraffe remains housed at the Museum of Natural History in La Rochelle are those of Zarafa, France’s first giraffe who arrived in Marseille in October 1826 and in Paris nine months later. Let …
With its long neck, its 50-centimetre tongue (19 inches), the size of its heart, and the way it communicates with its fellow creatures, the giraffe is an animal rich in symbolic meanings. It generally represents:
I had to go to Florence… I did, from May 6 to 10, 2013.
Because the first giraffe to go to Europe was Florentine! A diplomatic gift presented to Lorenzo de Medici in 1486. Several Italian artists of the time …
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