Illustrations by Ernst Haeckel

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Ernst Haeckel was a 19th century zoologist. He was an early proponent of Darwinism. However, he did blend elements of Lamarkism into his understanding of natural selection. He also adhered to the idea of the Great Chain of Being. With that in mind he argued against a single human proto-ancestor, and instead argued that each race evolved independently. I'm sure you can guess which race occupied the upper rung in his view of the Chain of Being. Aside from those dodgy views he did offer significant contributions to the science of biology.

These are drawing he did as a naturalist. These, and those after the jump, are from PICRYL's Ernst Haeckel collection. There are many more at that link.

Ernst Haeckel

Drawings of jellyfish

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Ernst Haeckel was a 19th century German biologist. After the untimely death of his young wife he became fascinated by jellyfish (medusae). Their ethereal and fragile beauty touched a chord in his sorrow. 

These samples of his illustrations are from Public Domain Review. There are more after the jump.