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Animals of old

Tamsin WalkerJuly 9, 2015

If you are prone to think that a zebra's a zebra and a bear's a bear, take a look through this gallery. You might be surprised at how artists' impressions of animals change over the generations.

https://p.dw.com/p/1Fvlj
An old image of an armadillo
Image: gemeinfrei

That wildlife habitats across the world are being reshaped by climate change and the seemingly unstoppable human hand, is a well-established fact. That animals are being forced to adapt or face extinction, likewise.

But their evolution, like our own, is ongoing, and the way they look now does not necessarily reflect their appearance of 200 years ago. We have unearthed some amazing images from the British Library archives that offer artists' perspectives of old, and reveal a catalogue of subtle differences.

Whether that is down to physical change or artistic license is not easy to say, but images of old are sometimes strikingly different to those of today. Take a look through our gallery to see for yourself.