Sulfur Peacock Moth from The Butterflies and Moths of America Part 2 1862

This lithograph of a Sulfur Peacock Moth is from a series entitled "The Butterflies and Moths of America", published by Louis Prang & Co. between 1887 and 1893. Considered a pioneer of the American chromolithography industry, Prang mass-produced affordable prints for middle-class consumers. As a result, chromolithography democratized art and education by providing accessible imagery to the wider public. The series this print is taken from catered to the growing interest in natural history, fueled by scientific exploration and evolutionary theory. The Sulfur Peacock Moth, scientifically rendered, speaks to a broader cultural impulse to categorize and understand the natural world through a scientific lens. By studying similar mass-produced prints and their distribution networks, we gain insights into the social and cultural values of the late 19th century.