Butterfly-wings art

For its rich in butterfly diversity, Taiwan has been once known as a butterfly kingdom. In 1960s Taiwan was once the largest exporter of butterfly handicraft products in the world. Tens of thousands of the residents on the island were benefited by the butterfly resource directly or indirectly. Taiwan’s butterfly processing industry subsided in early 1980s owing to industrial transition, market shrinking, less butterfly resource, and several other factors. Collectible butterfly products with good condition became fewer and fewer as time goes by. In 2010 the family of Sung-Kun Ong donated over 100,000 butterfly specimens and many elaborate butterfly products to NMNS. This beautiful butterfly-wing painting is one of the donated items. It depicts the indigenous Tao people on Orchid Island and their traditional fishing boat.