Gene Jarvis: Arabian Oryx

Artist: Gene Jarvis
1921 - 1990
Nationality: American
Artwork Year: 1981
Image Size: 9.5 by 9 inches
Overall Size: 12.75 by 12.5 inches
Medium: Pen & Ink on Hot Press Illustration Board

When a Bedouin tribesman went into the desert two centuries ago to hunt the Arabian Oryx, the odds were against him. He had to live on dried meat and milk from his camel and was forced to endure the searing daytime desert heat as well as plunging temperatures at night. Only the hardiest and most accomplished hunters were sent after the stately Oryx, who spear-like horns could severely injure a man. The Oryx, a member of the antelope family, was well suited for life in the desert and arid steppes, and proved to be a cunning and dangerous opponent for those who sought it. More recent hunters had little to worry about. With the advent of the telescopic gun sight and the automobile, the Arabian Oryx became accessible to every hunter. The only problem, after awhile, became finding the beast. In the last hundred years the Arabian Oryx has been nearly exterminated. Once common throughout the Middle East, this unusual animal has been hunted so relentlessly that only a handful now exist in the wild in the desert to the south of Saudi Arabia. Like most desert dwellers, the Oryx rests during the day in the shade of a bush or tree, and forages for food at night. Incredibly, the Oryx is believed to be able to last indefinitely without taking a drink of water; it derives all of the moisture it needs from the desert plants and tubers it eats. Since the sixteenth century, the Arabian Oryx has been admired by Europeans for its beautiful skin. Conservationists are working to save the Arabian Oryx.

This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood® First Day Cover for the German Democratic Republic stamp issued June 24, 1980.

Artwork Copyright © 1981 Unicover Corporation. All Rights Reserved under United States and international copyright laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, transmit, or otherwise exploit the Artwork in any way. Images of the Artwork may be watermarked and/or digitally watermarked. Any sale of the physical original does not include or convey the Copyright or any right comprised in the copyright.

Our Stock Number (SKU): XB07191

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