The Quagga Mountain Range

The Victorian master artist, Samuel Daniell travelled through the Karoo over 200 years ago. He saw Quagga in situ on the plains just below the majestic hills that flank this semi desert region of South Africa. I particularly admire how Daniell delicately inserted the very mountain range to the right of the subject. For if you look carefully you will clearly see how the rivers of black and brown on the mane of the Quagga resemble the erosion along the kloofs of the mountains to the right.

If you were to find yourself in the town of Bedford  at sunset, look up at the lush green backdrop and take your imagination back to the time of the KhoiKhoi. There in contrast one can still see the shadows that resemble the neck of the Quagga. It’s been said that the naming was onomatopoeic, resembling the quagga's call,  transcribed as "kwa-ha-ha".

The Khoikhoi, who were the indigenous people to this region were the ones who named the Karoo and the Quagga, now extinct, but not forgotten. Their majestic memory is still alive with us today in the form of mountain ranges, San rock-art depictions and aquatints such as Daniell’s Quagga.

First issued in the format of those grand colour plate folios, this plate or aquatint appeared in the book “African Scenery and Animals” published in 1805. Technically it’s an engraving that has been hand coloured. The style of art is know as the British Naturalist style. The objective of those artists would be to tell a story with as many details around the subject as possible. Here in this artwork, Daniell depicts our Quagga in the foreground. On display like a military parade, the grandness of this subspecies of the Zebra is palpable. It was for this very colouring and that it was docile that the quagga was hunted to extinction in the 1870’s.

We now marvel at what was and so the most desirable of the Daniell plates must be Equus Quagga Quagga.

Watch the Youtube video to see more images of the Quagga HERE

Sold for R15,000.