Illustration of a pineapple showing the metamorphosis of a caterpillar to a butterfly

This image was created by Merian from observations made between 1699 and 1701 while she travelled Suriname.

It appears in second edition of 'Mariae Sibillae Merian Dissertatio de generatione et metamorphosibus insectorum Surinamensium'. The accompanying text was originally written in Latin by Merian, and in the University of Sydney Library copy, has also been translated into English by Dutch botanist Caspar Commelin (1667? - 1731).

In the description, Merian describes the taste of an "Ananas" (Pineapple), stating that it must be "stripped of its coat before it can be it can be eaten" and "This fruit in taste has a snatch of the grape, the pomegranate; ribesia, apples & pears together", as well as describing how the caterpillar undergoes the process of metamorphosis to become a butterfly.