Dongterfly | Whimsical

A one-of-a-kind handmade whimsical shadowbox,  for lovers of peculiar natural history and dark humour.

This piece features preserved Graphium antheus butterfly wings, a butterfly larva and a raccoon baculum arranged among mosses, lichens, flowers and fungi inside an ornate vintage-style frame.

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Details:

• Preserved Graphium antheus butterfly wings
• Butterfly larva, preserved
• Raccoon baculum
• Preserved mosses, lichens, flowers and fungi
• Hand-cast and hand-painted ornate frame with gold finish and black detailing
• Ready to hang

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About the frame:
The frame is entirely handmade from start to finish. I cast it myself from my own original moulds, then sand, paint and lacquer each piece by hand. The glass is hand-cut to fit. The wooden back is sanded and lined with velvet, then finished with lace trim. No two frames are identical.

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Processing:

One of a kind.

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Shipping
Carefully packaged to ensure safe delivery.
Original design — no copies permitted.

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Size
23cm x 16cm

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LORE
The Little Caterpillar’s Big Dream

Deep in an enchanted forest, where mushrooms whispered secrets and flowers bloomed in places they probably shouldn’t, there lived a little caterpillar with a very particular ambition.

She didn’t dream of becoming a queen.
She didn’t dream of flying across distant lands.
She didn’t even dream of becoming an ordinary butterfly.

No.

She wanted to become a Dongterfly.

Every morning, she would crawl onto the same flower and stare dreamily at the magnificent creature above her.

The beautiful wings.
And, most importantly, that wonderfully peculiar dong dangling proudly in the middle.

“One day,” she whispered, “that will be me.”

The other caterpillars thought she was completely ridiculous.

But she was determined.

She stretched her little legs.
She practised flapping imaginary wings.
She tried posing seductively on mushrooms, although the mushrooms seemed deeply uncomfortable with this.

She even spent one entire afternoon staring at herself in a dewdrop.

“Yes,” she sighed. “I have the potential.”

There was only one problem.

Nobody actually knew how a caterpillar became a Dongterfly.

It was an ancient magical mystery.

Some said only the most peculiar caterpillars were chosen. Others claimed it involved a secret flower, a full moon and several things that were probably best not discussed in polite company.

Whatever the truth was, Dongterflies were exceedingly rare.

And so, every evening, our little dreamer would sit among the moss and flowers, staring up at the creature she hoped to become.

Perhaps the secret was hidden somewhere in the forest.

Perhaps it was hidden in the moonlight.

Or perhaps…

she already had a little bit of Dongterfly magic inside her. Perhaps our little caterpillar simply needs someone with a little more knowledge of magic, metamorphosis and unusually impressive dongs to point her in the right direction.

And who knows? Maybe that someone is you.

After all, every great Dongterfly has to start somewhere.