ALOYS ZÖTL | A COMMON BLACKBIRD, A RED-BILLED STARLING, A WESTERN BLUEBIRD AND A PIED MYNA ON A BRANCH OF A CHERRY TREE

Unidentified collector's mark, verso (not in Lugt)

Very little is known about Aloys Zötl’s life. He was born in Freistadt in Upper Austria and followed in his father’s professional footsteps, becoming a master dyer.  When Zötl married he moved to the village of Eferding, approximately forty kilometres from Freistadt and he is thought never to have travelled far from home, far less abroad.  As the majority of his watercolours feature exotic animals and sea creatures, it is assumed he was inspired by the large collection of published works of zoology, natural history, ethnography and travel that he owned in his extensive library.