Card 19, Argynnis Aglaja, from the Butterflies series (N183) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. 1888

This is "Card 19, Argynnis Aglaja" from the Butterflies series, a chromolithograph trading card made by William S. Kimball & Co. The card depicts a woman adorned with butterfly wings, set against a mottled, indeterminate backdrop. Note how the artist uses line and color to create a figure that merges human and insect elements. The hard, dark lines of the butterfly wings contrast with the softer, pastel rendering of the woman’s skin and dress. The wings themselves are meticulously detailed, with each spot and vein sharply delineated, creating a sense of naturalistic precision. This card operates within a semiotic system where nature and culture intersect, yet the structure destabilizes any fixed meaning of identity. Is she woman, butterfly, or an idealized hybrid? This ambiguity invites us to consider how categories are blurred. Ultimately, the card uses a formal tension between the natural and artificial to challenge our understanding of beauty and being.