Heinrich Egersdörfer

Heinrich "Heiner" Egersdörfer (1853 Nuremberg, Germany – 29 April 1915 St. Pancras, London), was a German-born artist, illustrator and cartoonist who settled in South Africa.

His sketches and drawings, often in a light-hearted vein, are an invaluable record of life in the Cape Colony and were often used in local publications.

He started painting wildlife studies, which found a ready market and his work appeared in The Cape Argus, The Owl and other periodicals.

His only known photograph appeared in The Cape Argus Weekly Edition supplement on "Famous South African Artists" on 26 December 1906.

With the death in Cape Town of his wife, Mary Jane Creaney in 1901(?1903), and that of his son Heinrich (1896-1910), and beset by financial problems, he returned to Europe and London where he died in 1915.