Hortus Eystettensis: The Bishop's Garden and Besler's Magnificent Book by Nicolas Barker

Book Description

Secondhand. Good condition. Wear to book corners and edges. Foxing to top foredge. Marks on right and tail foredges and associated page edges and corners. Dust jacket has light creasing. Very large book.

In the early seventeenth century, the Prince-Bishop of Eichstatt, Germany, created a splendid garden, the first to contain all the shrubs and flowering plants known at the time, including the latest imports from the Orient and America. When the garden was complete, he commissioned a monumental picture book of the plants - the Hortus Eystettensis (Garden of Eichstatt), published in 1613 by botanist-apothecary Basilius Besler, who had helped to develop the garden.

That book, printed from elaborately prepared copper engravings in a large format, contains 367 plates that beautifully illustrate more than 1,000 species.

Gardeners and horticulturalists, bibliophiles and botanists, indeed anyone with an interest in the history of gardens and botanical illustrations will be captivated by this beautifully printed, carefully researched, and thoroughly engaging book. (book flap)