The Besler 1st Ed. Pl. 237, Strawflower; Coralwort; Night-flowering Campion elegantly captures the blossoming botanicals in charming detail.
Delicately engraved on laid paper, this 17th-century print has a tactile quality that is emphasized by the paper texture, raised linework, and platemark. Likewise, the addition of a calligraphic text on the verso lends dimension and expository intrigue to the piece. As part of the oldest and most costly florilegium Hortus Eystettensis, this print is a valuable piece of history and an enchanting addition to antique and contemporary spaces alike.
About Besler’s Hortus Eystettensis
First published in 1613 by Nuremberg apothecary Basilius Besler, the monumental florilegium Hortus Eystettensis artistically records the flowering contents of the Garden of Eichstätt. Cultivated by Prince-Bishop Johann Konrad von Gemmingen at his Bavarian residence, this garden boasted local and exotic flora from all over the known world. Besler’s folio constitutes 367 exquisitely engraved and lavishly colored plates that capture over 1,000 plant varietals cultivated in the garden. Rendered on large sheets of 22 ½ x 18 inch paper, Besler’s engravings emphasize the ornate qualities of the plants as he traces their progression throughout the seasonal calendar. The first edition of Besler’s Hortus Eystettensis can be distinguished from the Deluxe through the calligraphic text on the verso and no watermark in the paper.
About Basilius Besler
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.
For more information about Besler 1st Ed. Pl. 237, Strawflower; Coralwort; Night-flowering Campion, email us at [email protected] or check out our articles Basilius Besler’s Hortus Eystettensis or Garden of Eichstätt and How to Distinguish Between the Various Editions of Besler’s ‘Garden of Eichstätt’.
more information about botanical printsView All Articles
Audubon Prints Birds and Animal Art Botanical Art Information
Natural History Art Treasures under $10,000
Collecting original art doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, there are a surprising number of original paintings and antique prints that can be acquired [...]
Read More
Botanical Art
A Guide to Collecting Antique Botanical Prints
Loved for their beauty, whimsy, and relative affordability, botanical prints offer a wonderful avenue for novice and seasoned collectors alike. Whether displayed as solitary statement [...]
Read More
Birds and Animal Art Botanical Art Information
An Obsession with Natural History and Victorian Collecting Crazes
Spanning the majority of the 19th century, the Victorian era was marked by a rise in fashionable collecting hobbies. Natural history objects were among the [...]
Read More
Botanical Art Information
How to Distinguish Between the Various Editions of Besler’s ‘Garden of Eichstätt’
A practical guide to understanding and identifying the different editions of Besler’s folio through paper types and material characteristics.
Read More
Botanical Art
Plant Mutations in the Botanical Prints of Pierre-Joseph Redouté
A consideration of the artistic rendering of the Tulip Breaking Virus, and the phenomenon of Rose Perfoliation in Redouté's prints
Read More
Botanical Art
Encountering the Amazon through Margaret Mee’s Lens
A consideration of Mee's implicit and overt depictions of symbiotic ecosystems in her paintings of the Amazon Rainforest
Read More
