Mulberry Botanical Art

Mulberry
Morus spp.

Mulberry Botanical Art

Women placing silkworms on trays together with mulberry leaves

Fig. 1

Cropped from Sericulture: The Process of Making Silk, a Chinese Song dynasty painting attributed to Liang Kai (梁楷).

Fig. 2

Morus alba L. [as Mulbar]

Fig. 3

Morus alba L. [as Morus alba]

Fig. 4

Morus nigra L.

Fig. 5

Morus nigra L.

Fig. 6

Morus rubra L.

The Gathering of Mulberry Leaves and the Feeding of the Silkworms, Plate 5 from "The Introduction of the Silkworm" [Vermis Sericus].

Fig. 7

The Gathering of Mulberry Leaves and the Feeding of the Silkworms, Plate 5 from "The Introduction of the Silkworm" [Vermis Sericus]

Fig. 8

Vincent van Gogh: The Mulberry Tree, 1889, Norton Simon Museum

Court ladies producing silk under the supervision of the empress; their tasks include preparing eggs, chopping mulberry leaves, feeding caterpillars and unwinding cocoons. Colour woodcut by Kuniaki II, 1883.

Court ladies producing silk under the supervision of the empress; their tasks include preparing eggs, chopping mulberry leaves, feeding caterpillars and unwinding cocoons. Colour woodcut by Kuniaki II, 1883.

Fig. 9

Court ladies producing silk under the supervision of the empress; their tasks include preparing eggs, chopping mulberry leaves, feeding caterpillars and unwinding cocoons. Colour woodcut by Kuniaki II, 1883.

Back to
Black Mulberry Page
Red Mulberry Page
White Mulberry Page

Botanical Art

Fig. ¹ Kai, Liang. Women placing silkworms on trays together with mulberry leaves. c. 1200s. Cropped from Sericulture: The Process of Making Silk, a Chinese Song dynasty painting, Cleveland Museum of Art, online collection "The Song Economic Revolution: Textiles and Silk". Asia for Educators. Columbia University. commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Women_placing_silkworms_on_trays_together_with_mulberry_leaves_
(Sericulture_by_Liang_Kai,_1200s).jpg. Accessed 24 Oct. 2017.
Fig. ² Morus alba L. [as Mulbar]. Kongliga Vetenskaps-Acadeniens Handlingar. Stockholm, vol. 6: t. 11, plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=364422. Accessed 24 Oct. 2017.
Fig. ³ Morus alba L. [as Morus alba]. Weinmann, J.W., Phytanthoza iconographia, vol. 3: t. 736, fig. a (1742) [unsigned]. Illustration contributed by: Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, U.S.A. plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=126735. Accessed 24 Oct. 2017.
Fig. ⁴Morus nigra L. 1885. Thomé, O.W., Flora von Deutschland Österreich und der Schweiz, Tafeln, vol. 2: t. 180. Illustration contributed by: www.BioLib.de. plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=149233. Accessed 25 Oct.2017.
Fig. ⁵Morus nigra L. 1918. Kirtikar, K.R., Basu, B.D., Indian medicinal plants, Plates, vol. 5: t. 891, fig. B. Illustration contributed by: Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C., U.S.A. plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=163659. Accessed 25 Oct.2017.
Fig. ⁶Morus rubra L. 1901. Peter, A., Botanische Wandtafeln, t. 62, fig. 5. Illustration contributed by: Stichting Academisch Erfgoed/geheugenvannederland.nl, the Netherlands. plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=324063. Accessed 25 Oct.2017.
Fig. ⁷Karel van Mallery. The Gathering of Mulberry Leaves and the Feeding of the Silkworms, Plate 5 from "The Introduction of the Silkworm" [Vermis Sericus]. ca. 1595. Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1950. Licensed under (CC01.0). metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/659742?sortBy=Relevance&ft=mulberry+leaves&offset=0&rpp=
20&pos=3. Accessed 25 Oct.2017.
Fig. ⁸Razimantv. "Vincent van Gogh: The Mulberry Tree." Norton Simon Museum, J.-B. de la Faille: L'Œuvre de Vincent van Gogh, catalogue raisonné, F637, Oct. 1889, 21 June 2010, Wikimedia Commons, via ml.wikipedia, Public Domain, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Mulberry_Tree_by_Vincent_van_Gogh.jpg. Accessed 16 Mar. 2020.
Fig. ⁸ Utagawa, Kuniaki. "Court ladies producing silk under the supervision of the empress; their tasks include preparing eggs, chopping mulberry leaves, feeding caterpillars and unwinding cocoons." Welcome Collection, Wellcome Library no. 36756i, Colour woodcut by Kuniaki II, 1883, (CC BY 4.0), wellcomecollection.org/works/zc37t833. Accessed 17 Mar. 2020.

Published 24 Oct. 2017 LR. Last update 17 Mar. 2020 LR