Nicolaas Struyk

Nicolaas Struyk is a draughtsman known for a specialized corpus of detailed natural history drawings. His documented period of activity is concentrated around 1706, suggesting a brief but intensely focused career or a single documented patron commission. Struyk focused exclusively on entomological subjects, illustrating insects with scientific precision characteristic of early eighteenth-century observational art.

Six drawings by Struyk are represented in collections, notably at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These works include meticulous studies of specific species, such as the two documented drawings titled A Butterfly, as well as A Dragonfly, A Moth, and the composite study A Caterpillar and Two Moths on a Branch and Two Butterflies. This small surviving body of work establishes Struyk as a skilled observer and master of minute detail.

The age and specificity of his original studies mean that today, the detailed nature of Nicolaas Struyk prints remains highly valued by collectors and naturalists. Due to their antiquity, Struyk’s original drawings are often held in the public domain, allowing for the widespread availability of high-quality prints used for both scientific comparison and decorative purposes.