For #GuineaPigAppreciationDay, the two earliest examples I've found of guinea pigs in the European visual record:
1. Painting attributed to Giovanni da Udine, n.d., artist active early 1500s to death in 1564
2. Drawing from the Felix Platter album, collected sometime between 1546-54
Attributed to Giovanni da Udine (Italian, 1487–1564) Head of a Guinea Pig oil on canvas laid on panel 6.5 x 7 in. (16.5 x 17.8 cm.) From Duke's Fine Art Auction catalog, 11th April 2013, Lot 215
Drawing collected by Felix Platter, to be used in Gessner's Historiae animalium. The drawings were made by several artists, mostly anonymous, and were collected between 1546 and 1558 (this one must date to no later than 1554 as it served as a reference for Gessner's woodcut published that year). Bijzondere collectie Universiteit van Amsterdam collection.
