1838 Robert Sweet British Flower Garden Pink American Cowslip, Shooting Star
$ 9.24
Description
1838 Robert Sweet British Flower Garden Pink American Cowslip, Shooting Star. His contribution was both notable and prolific, including Geraniaceae in 1820, Cistineae in 1825, Flora Australasica and The Florist’s Guide in 1827, and his largest work with 712 illustrations, The British Flower Garden, in 1838. Robert Sweet British Flower Garden 1838 The years from 1760 to 1860 are considered the golden age of botanical illustration and botanical magazine publication. Robert Sweet (1783-1835) made significant contributions during this period, when “tulipomania” and the hunt for other glamorous and exotic species was a national pastime in Europe. Financed by wealthy patrons, many of whom were able to raise exotic species more successfully due to improvements in greenhouse construction, the publication of botanical works reached its peak. Robert Sweet was a gardener and nurseryman from Devon, in the South of England, sometimes called the Riviera of the British Isles. Through his work for wealthy landowners, he became interested first in geraniums and rock rose species and began publishing illustrated botanical works. In 1812 he became a fellow of the Linnaean Society. Many flower species were named for him. Botanical publications became his principal livelihood, though he still cultivated plants for sale in his own garden. His contribution was both notable and prolific, including Geraniaceae in 1820, Cistineae in 1825, Flora Australasica and The Florist’s Guide in 1827, and his largest work with 712 illustrations, The British Flower Garden, in 1838. It is from the British Flower Garden that we offer this beautiful selection of prints, much rarer than the Curtis prints of the same time. Many of the illustrations were by Edward Dalton Smith, whom Wilfrid Blunt calls a "considerable artist of small-scale work", who painted exquisite floral portraits in brilliant color. Fortunately, these treasures from the past have come to us in remarkably fine condition, with wide margins and strong plate marks on a heavy wove paper that is a soft white. Each print measures approximately 6 inches wide by 9 3/4 inches long and is accompanied by the relevant descriptive text and a copy of the title page. The original hand coloring of the prints is very vivid and each print is an impressionistic water color of exceptional charm. References include: Great Flower Books 1700-1900, Sitwell Wikipedia About Antique Prints We try to select antique prints in the best possible condition, with as few defects as possible. Nevertheless, these prints are often hundreds of years old and show the effects of time, as noted below 1. Most common is paper darkening, or toning, resulting in the paper becoming shades darker, from off white to light brown. We rarely offer very toned prints, unless the issue is particularly scarce. 2. Text offset occurs over time, when the text page is against the image and ink from the text makes lines on the image. Conversely, image offset occurs when the hand coloring transfers slightly to the text. Again, we rarely offer heavily offset prints. 3. Spotted or foxing is also common due to age and handling over a long period of time and while a small degree of foxing is common and acceptable, we avoid extensively foxed prints. SHIPPING Shipping is first class and we pack the prints flat and well protected in foam core, unless they are large, when we very carefully roll them with several protective layers. They roll out flat very quickly. PAYMENT We are delighted to combine shipments to save on postage. If you wish to combine, please wait to pay until your last purchase up to 4 days. We ship within one day any lots that you have paid for. RETURNS Items May be Returned for a Full Refund within 30 days.
