Axial Commons Image Treasury
Pen and brown wash drawing: rowing boats on water above, and below a group of figures around a fire and furnace at night.

The Collecting of Bitumen [above]; Catching Night Moths [below]

A pen and brown ink drawing with brown washes shows boats on water above, with men rowing and gathering material from the surface. Below, figures gather around a glowing fire beneath a lean-to structure and a tall, bulky furnace while a torch-bearing figure stands at right.

Artist
Jan van der Straet
Date
1596 or before
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brush and brown and black washes over black chalk on laid paper
Source
Smithsonian (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum)
Size
2763 × 4000 px
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Public domain · Smithsonian (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum) releases this image under CC0 (latest date 1596).
Rights checked 2026-11-05 · tier A · as stated by the source: CC0 (Smithsonian Open Access)

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Smithsonian Institution, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Español: La recolección de betún; Captura de polillas nocturnas

Un dibujo a pluma con tinta marrón y aguadas marrones muestra barcas sobre el agua en la parte superior, con hombres remando y recogiendo material de la superficie. Abajo, varias figuras se reúnen junto a un fuego brillante, bajo un cobertizo y un horno alto, mientras una figura con antorcha está a la derecha.

Português: A coleta de betume; Captura de mariposas noturnas

Um desenho a pena com tinta marrom e aguadas marrons mostra barcos na água na parte superior, com homens remando e recolhendo material da superfície. Embaixo, figuras reúnem-se junto a um fogo intenso, sob um abrigo e um forno alto, enquanto uma figura com tocha está à direita.