Monstrous Collection

Zazel / Human Cannonball
Zazel at the Royal Aquarium, London. " A beautiful Lady shot from a monstrous cannon." This is thought to be the earliest photograph of a human cannonball act

DOREs LEVIATHAN
Dores interpretation of the combat between God and the sea dragon Leviathan that will take place in the end times, as described by Isaiah

The Giant Factotum amusing himself, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1797
NCO190489 The Giant Factotum amusing himself, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1797 (hand-coloured etching) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); Courtesy of the Warden and Scholars of New College

Beauty / Beast (Anderson)
Anne Anderson gives us a truly monstrous beast : no wonder Beauty rejects the marriage proposals he makes every night at the supper-table

I m Some Pumpkin - a very strange postcard featuring a man with a manically-grinning carved pumpkin instead of his head, which is frankly pretty disturbing. Date: 1912

Giant deep-sea isopod (Bathynomus giganteus) Picture was taken in cooperation with the Zoological Museum University of Hamburg

Ancient Etruscan wedding ceremony. The bride and groom hold each others hands in front of doors which are only opened after the ceremony has ended

La Ville En Feu! The City On Fire!
An atmospheric illustration of an ornately designed bridge under a darkening, hazy sky, in front of an audience of monstrous gargoyles. Date: circa 1901

Circe by Will Dyson
Cartoon by the Australian cartoonist and artist, Will Dyson (1880-1938). Dyson made his name on the Sydney Bulletin and then in London on the Daily Herald where his cartoons during the First World

El Sueno De La Razon Produce Monstruos (The Dream of Reason Produces Monsters), 1799 (etching & aquatint)
3745577 El Sueno De La Razon Produce Monstruos (The Dream of Reason Produces Monsters), 1799 (etching & aquatint) by Goya y Lucientes, Francisco Jose de (1746-1828); 32x22 cm; Manchester Art Gallery

The Fall of the Rebel Angels, 1554 (oil on panel)
471159 The Fall of the Rebel Angels, 1554 (oil on panel) by Floris, Frans (1519-70); 303x220 cm; Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp, Belgium; © Art in Flanders

Caricature depicting King Henry III of France as a homosexual monster (engraving)
7186160 Caricature depicting King Henry III of France as a homosexual monster (engraving) by French School, (16th century) (after); Private Collection; (add.info)

The sleep of reason produces monsters, plate 43 of Los caprichos, 1799 (etching and aquatint)
IND81662 The sleep of reason produces monsters, plate 43 of Los caprichos, 1799 (etching and aquatint) by Goya y Lucientes

Portrait, 1942 (indian ink on paper)
XKH149269 Portrait, 1942 (indian ink on paper) by Wols, Alfred Otto Wolfgang Schulze (1913-51); 32.3x24.8 cm; On Loan to the Hamburg Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany

The Solitary One or The Thinker, 1943 (indian ink on paper)
XKH149271 The Solitary One or The Thinker, 1943 (indian ink on paper) by Wols, Alfred Otto Wolfgang Schulze (1913-51); 29.2x19.7 cm; On Loan to the Hamburg Kunsthalle, Hamburg

The Misshapen Polyp Floated on the Shores, a Sort of Smiling and Hideous Cyclops
3927658 The Misshapen Polyp Floated on the Shores, a Sort of Smiling and Hideous Cyclops, from the series Les Origines, 1883 (litho) by Redon

Monstrous whale devouring humans, from 1550 edition of Cosmographia
5669002 Monstrous whale devouring humans, from 1550 edition of Cosmographia by Sebastian Munster (woodcut) by Munster, Sebastian (1589-1552); Photo eAF Fotografie; German, out of copyright

Who Would Have Thought It! (Quien lo creyera!), 1794-1796 (etching and aquatint)
1066732 Who Would Have Thought It! (Quien lo creyera!), 1794-1796 (etching and aquatint) by Goya y Lucientes, Francisco Jose de (1746-1828); 18.7x13.2 cm; Dallas Museum of Art, Texas

The Giant Factotum amusing hinself, pub. 1797 (hand coloured engraving)
2966812 The Giant Factotum amusing hinself, pub. 1797 (hand coloured engraving) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); Private Collection; (add.info)

Fat Cattle, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1802 (hand-coloured etching)
NCO190135 Fat Cattle, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1802 (hand-coloured etching) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); 36x25.5 cm; Courtesy of the Warden and Scholars of New College

A Monstrous Serpent Devouring the Royal Fleet, c. 1670-1690 (illuminated manuscript)
1196764 A Monstrous Serpent Devouring the Royal Fleet, c.1670-1690 (illuminated manuscript) by Indian School, (17th century); 39.5x23.5 cm; Private Collection; Photo eChristies Images; Indian

Studies of grotesque figures (pen & ink on paper) (recto of 433435)
CH433436 Studies of grotesque figures (pen & ink on paper) (recto of 433435) by Bosch, Hieronymus (c.1450-1516) (follower of)

Punch cartoon: Taste for the Monstrous (engraving)
5237208 Punch cartoon: Taste for the Monstrous (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Taste for the Monstrous)

Britannia a la Beardsley (engraving)
5237270 Britannia a la Beardsley (engraving) by Reed, Edward Tennyson (1860-1933); Private Collection; (add.info.: Britannia a la Beardsley)

Kamada Matahachi, Edo period, c. 1840 (colour woodblock print)
FSG349066 Kamada Matahachi, Edo period, c.1840 (colour woodblock print) by Kuniyoshi, Utagawa (1798-1861); 38 x 26 cm; Arthur M

Ms Fr 2810 f. 76v, Wolf-headed people of the Andaman Islands in the Indian Ocean
CHT69821 Ms Fr 2810 f.76v, Wolf-headed people of the Andaman Islands in the Indian Ocean, from Le Livre des Merveilles, c.1410-12 (tempera on vellum) by Boucicaut Master

Green man from medieval pageants
Pageantry. A green man or monstrous wilde man holding a large firework from 1635. Handcoloured lithograph by Joseph Strutt from his own Sports and Pastimes of the People of England

Wild men from medieval pageants
Pageantry. A wild man dressed in leaves, from a ballad of Robin Good Fellow, and a green man or monstrous wilde man holding a large firework from 1635

Twenty masked musicians and dancers emerge
Twenty masked and costumed musicians and dancers emerge from four monstrous heads. Dance of the Nations, part of the celebrations of the birth of Freiderich, Duke of Wurttemberg, 1616

Gargoyle from the balustrade of the Grande Galerie of the west facade, replica of a 12th century original (stone)
ALI213262 Gargoyle from the balustrade of the Grande Galerie of the west facade, replica of a 12th century original (stone) (b/w photo) by Viollet-le-Duc, Eugene Emmanuel (1814-79); Notre Dame

The Octopus Attacking the Nautilus, illustration from 20
CHT213077 The Octopus Attacking the Nautilus, illustration from 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (1828-1905) engraved by Henri Theophile Hildibrand (1824-97) Paris, Hetzel

The Vulture of the Constitution, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1789 (etching)
NCO191247 The Vulture of the Constitution, published by Hannah Humphrey in 1789 (etching) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); 24.5x34.7 cm; Courtesy of the Warden and Scholars of New College

At this signal the other Aesir threw the chain round the monsters neck (colour litho)
2813698 At this signal the other Aesir threw the chain round the monsters neck (colour litho) by Brock, Charles Edmund (1870-1938) (after); Private Collection; (add.info)

Cerberus, 1866 (woodcut)
3726019 Cerberus, 1866 (woodcut) by Burne-Jones, Edward Coley (1833-98) (after); 10.3x15.8 cm; Private Collection; (add.info)

Four Captive Demons, 1470-1500 (w / c and gold on silk)
3493029 Four Captive Demons, 1470-1500 (w/c and gold on silk) by Persian School, (15th century); 34x20.2 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA; (add.info.: Possibly by Muhammad Siyah Qalam)

Le Maia, araignee de mer femelle, couverte de mousses et d algues marines, quart de la grandeur (engraving)
3645713 Le Maia, araignee de mer femelle, couverte de mousses et d algues marines, quart de la grandeur (engraving) by French School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Le Maia)

Design for a Dish using a Sea Dragon and Boat, 1879 (gouache and pencil on paper)
661135 Design for a Dish using a Sea Dragon and Boat, 1879 (gouache and pencil on paper) by Morgan, William De (1839-1917); Private Collection; The Stapleton Collection; English, out of copyright

Gargoyle from the balustrade of the Grande Galerie, devil holding a toad, replica of a 12th century original (stone)
ALI213264 Gargoyle from the balustrade of the Grande Galerie, devil holding a toad, replica of a 12th century original (stone) (b/w photo) by Viollet-le-Duc, Eugene Emmanuel (1814-79); Notre Dame

Cleopatra, by H Rider Haggard (engraving)
1626224 Cleopatra, by H Rider Haggard (engraving) by Woodville, Richard Caton II (1856-1927) (after); Private Collection; (add.info.: Cleopatra, by H Rider Haggard)

The Spider Crab, illustration from 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea
CHT213078 The Spider Crab, illustration from 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (1828-1905) engraved by Henri Theophile Hildibrand (1824-97) Paris, Hetzel

Monstrous whale devouring humans, from 1550 edition of
5669000 Monstrous whale devouring humans, from 1550 edition of Cosmographia by Sebastian Munster (woodcut) by Munster, Sebastian (1589-1552); Photo eAF Fotografie; German, out of copyright

Fat Cattle, pub. 1802 (hand coloured engraving)
3051746 Fat Cattle, pub. 1802 (hand coloured engraving) by Gillray, James (1757-1815); Private Collection; (add.info.: Francis Russell)

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"Monstrous: A Journey into the Realm of Imagination and Curiosity" Step right up and witness the extraordinary. From Zazel, the fearless Human Cannonball soaring through the skies, to DOREs LEVIATHAN, a colossal masterpiece that leaves us in awe. Behold The Giant Factotum amusing himself, as captured by Hannah Humphrey in 1797 - a whimsical spectacle that tickles our funny bones. Enter a world where dreams come alive on paper with an illustration from The Humorous Dreams of Pantagruel by Francois Desprez. Here, Beauty meets Beast in Anderson's enchanting tale, reminding us that true beauty lies within. Prepare for La Ville En Feu. The City On Fire. As chaos unfolds before your eyes, Circe by Will Dyson enchants with her mystical powers. And who could forget "I'm Some Pumpkin, " a delightful character whose uniqueness shines bright? Dive deep into uncharted waters alongside the Giant deep-sea isopod (Bathynomus giganteus), revealing nature's incredible diversity. Brace yourself for The Reckoning - a moment when actions have consequences and justice prevails. Finally, El Sueno De La Razon Produce Monstruos (The Dream of Reason Produces Monsters) transports us to Goya's haunting etching & aquatint world of imagination gone awry. It serves as a reminder that unchecked reason can birth unimaginable creatures. In this captivating journey through time and artistry, we explore what it means to be monstrous - whether it be bravery defying limits or the boundless depths of our own creativity. Open your mind and let these glimpses into fantastical realms ignite your imagination like never before.