Dr Seuss Taxidermy: Pictures of His “Unorthodox Taxidermy”
Dr. Seuss Taxidermy
Theadore Geisel was better known as Dr.Seuss. He actually created odd and unique taxidermy from parts of real animals that once lived. Teeth and horns were used to create these fantastical creatures made from the famous fictional kids book writer. He called these pieces unorthodox taxidermy, and certainly they are unorthodox. Most of the parts that Dr. Seuss used for these creatures were from the Springfield Zoo. These pieces go for several thousands of dollars apiece and the entire original collection from Dr. Seuss himself is for sale for over a million dollars.
In this article we are going to look at some of these pieces of unorthodox taxidermy and see exactly what Dr. Series taxidermy looks like.
Saw Fish:
This made-up fish creature is sporting a smirk as if to say “I know right? My nose is a saw.” Knowing what we know about how he created these pieces; it is pretty safe to assume that the teeth of the saw on the face of the fish is made of actual animal teeth.
It looks incredible because the length of the noise on the fish is at least 3 times longer than the body of the fish. If there was a fish that looked like this in real life it would be frightening, but the fact that it is not real makes it whimsical and fun.
Fantasy Moose Mount:
This unorthodox taxidermy piece is what can only be described as a moose like creature. This flat faced fictional animal looks like many of the usual cartoon characters found in Dr. Seuss’s drawings and books. It’s lopsided shaping and structure provide a fun and childish aesthetic to the piece. The large eyes make it look slightly neotenic which adds to the child like whimsy of the piece as well. The slanted face provides a little more nuance into the character of the animal. A little bit of personality shines through in this particular unorthodox taxidermy animal, showing its emotion in a way.
Dr. Seuss Style Peacock:
Dr. Seuss has had a particular love for creating bird art in his unorthodox taxidermy pieces. This specific animal that he made looks to be his own rendition of a peacock. It clearly has real peacock feathers on it as part of the creation process, but everything else is fictional and straight out of a Dr. Seuss book. The neck of the bird is extremely long, as well as the beak. The neck of the bird has 3 rings on it that add to the overall fictional feel of the creature. The squinty closed eyes make you feel almost as if the creature is peacefully smiling in a way.
Sheep with Antlers:
This Dr. Seuss taxidermy piece looks like a sheep with long prominent antlers on its head. This creature also has its eyes closed which increases its peaceful and gentle seeming nature. The long soft hair of the animal also increases this gentle aspect of the taxidermy piece. This one is not incredibly far off from something you may find in real life out in nature. That is in contrast to the usual pieces that were made by Dr. Seuss.
Multi-colored Bird:
Right back to the long skinny necked birds with this one, we see multiple colors on its neck and feathers on its head. The feathers on top of the bird’s head are most definitely from a real bird, as we already know that Dr. Seuss used real parts from actual animals in these unorthodox taxidermy pieces.
These animals are whimsical and colorful. They offer the viewer more of an expression on their faces than real taxidermy. The elongated necks are curved in such a way that the usual living creature would certainly not have such a bend naturally. The hues and shines to the colors offer a level of flair and fantastical aesthetics that we have come to love from Dr. Seuss. The disproportionate features on these animals, including the elongated beaks and bulging eyes, give you a new fun way to see his creations in the real world.
Black and Red Bird:
This bird, the same way as most of the other pieces in this collection, has its eyes closed. It also seems to sport a smile across its long yellow beak. Most of the birds in the Dr. Seuss taxidermy collection are incredibly similar to each other, but the thing that sets this particular piece apart from the rest is this bird’s color scheme. The black and red color pattern on this unorthodox taxidermy piece actually makes it a great piece for a more gothic décor style set up if you already have that going but want to add one of these pieces to your rooms wall.
The hair on top of this birds head nearly resembles a type of poofy hair cut straight out of a dark 80s thriller movie. It fits fantastically with the overall color scheme of the creature as well as the long skinny neck. You can only imagine the legs that this creature would have. Most likely they would be long and skinny in a similar fashion to the neck of the bird. Someone should make a full body sculpture of these creatures.
The Green Bird:
This bird is a good deal different than the rest. The neck of this bird is different than the others because of its thickness mostly. The neck of this bird is at least two times thicker than the necks of the other birds in this article, and it is thicker at the base of the neck than the top near the head of the bird. The colors used in this bird also set it apart from the other unorthodox taxidermy pieces here, because the color scheme is more natural and uses earthy greens.
The beak is still abnormally long and large compared to the size of the bird’s head, but there is yet another aspect of the bird that makes it more unique. On its neck there is a ruffle of feathers that stick out in a different manner than we see in any of the other fantasy taxidermy work in the other pictures.
Recap & Summary:
The Dr. Seuss taxidermy pieces are whimsical and fantastical. The fictional creatures are the creations of a creative mind that has been made incredibly famous by his children’s books that he has written. Some of these amazing creatures were brought to life by the very same person that brought them to the page in cartoon form in the first place. You learned a little bit about the history of these unorthodox taxidermy pieces and how much they are worth. You also got to see pictures of many Dr. Seuss taxidermy originals. The fun colors, long necks, big eyes, expressions, and curvy lines all play their own part in creating interesting and fun animals for you to look at. These creatures allow us to be transported into another reality and provide us with a sense of adventure.
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