A lovely hand-colored copper engraving of various types of flora from one of the finest botanical documentaries produced in an edition of 300 in the year 1613. Besler was commissioned by Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, the Prince Bishop of Gemmingen of Eichstatt to document his landmark gardens. This book chronicled the gardens through the four seasons, using about ten engravers for around sisteen years under Besler's direction. The plate depicts a central Nigella Sativa, or nutmeg flower, flanked on both sides by varieties of Solanum Dulcamara, also known as deadly nightshade. Basilius Besler's engravings from Hortus Eysttensis are the first large folio of natural history botanicals and is considered to be one of the greatist botanical books ever created. The surviving prints are historically significant on several levels. The relatively large number of the tulips and other flower bulbs is remarkable as they show the conditions before the actual introduction of overseas flora to Germany. The prints also survive the actual gardens which were destroyed by Swedish troops in 1634. A reconstruction of the original garden opened to the public in Eichstätt in 1998. Plate is apprx 19" x 15-1/2", paper is apprx 20-1/2" x 16-1/2". Please see details page for reference.
Mail-Brandt, Maria "Besler, Basilius Apotheker, Sammler, Gartenliebhaber, Verleger" Garten-Literatur, Germany: 27 February 2002. http://www.garten-literatur.de/Leselaube/persoenl/besler_p.htm "The Garden at Eichstätt", Taschen Books http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/books/interiors_savoir_vivre/all/facts/01624.htm
800/1,200 Sold $718.75
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