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THE SILVER-BLUE BUTTERFLY. 
Papilio Menelaus.—Soutn AmERicA, 
PLATE XxX. 
Papilio Menelaus, Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 749.—Merian’s Ins. 
Sur. pl. 538.—Cramer, Desc. de Papillons, ii. pl. 21. 
TuE upper surface of the wings of the Silver-Blue 
Butterfly, is of a brilliant verdigris green ; the ante- 
rior margin has a broad black band, in which are five 
oblong-ovate transverse white spots; round the whole 
posterior margin is a narrow black border, the mar- 
gins being indented ; the body and eyes are black ; 
the whole under surface of the wings clouded with 
brown, and marked with large ocellated spots ; the 
antenneare short, and thickening towards the points, 
which are club-shaped ; extent of the wings, five 
inches and three quarters. 
So uncommonly bright and brilliant is this superb 
insect, that it can be but faintly expressed by the 
utmost efforts of artificial colouring, and may serve 
as an instance, amongst many others, of the inimit- 
able beauty which Nature alone can produce. 
Linneeus, in his description of this splendid insect, 
observes, that the blue on the upper surface is so 
polished and lively, that scarcely any other natural 
