Different Animals in the “Jardin des Plantes”

This etching presents the animals that were kept in the Jardin des Plantes in Paris in the 19th century. The place had been established in 1626 as a botanical garden for the king. It was opened to the public in 1635 and became part of the National Museum of Natural History which was founded in 1793. At the same time, the first animals arrived, due to a new law which prohibited the keeping of exotic animals. Thus, many animals formerly belonging to showmen or to the formerly royal Ménagerie in Versailles were brought to the Jardin and exhibited after 1793, which makes it the oldest zoo with a scientific aim in the world.