17th Century Basilius Besler Original Copper Plate Engraving With Coa, Framed

Description

This Besler. Pl. 218, Henp-leaved Althaea; Musk Mallow elegantly captures the blossoming botanicals in charming detail.

Delicately engraved on laid … more This Besler. Pl. 218, Henp-leaved Althaea; Musk Mallow elegantly captures the blossoming botanicals in charming detail.

Delicately engraved on laid paper, this original copper plate engraving has a tactile quality that is emphasized by the paper texture, raised linework, and platemark. This print is a valuable piece of history and a wonderful addition to antique and contemporary spaces alike.

Basilius Besler was a Nuremberg apothecary who created one of the first great botanical folios, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden of Eichstätt), in 1613. Working at a time when botanical illustrations were used primarily to identify plants for medicinal purposes, Besler created a monumental florilegium that prioritized the beauty of the plants over their pharmacological usefulness. As a result, Besler’s Hortus Eystettensis acts as a transitional fulcrum in the history of botanical art between the association of plants as medicine to plants as objects of beauty. less