Botanical illustration

135 public-domain plates

Botanical illustration sits where art meets science: a plate had to be beautiful enough to sell a folio and accurate enough for a botanist to key a species from it. From the herbals of the Renaissance to the great chromolithographed floras of the nineteenth century, these plates were the field guide, the type specimen and the decorative print all at once. This archive holds 135 public-domain plates in this tradition, spanning the 22th century BC to the 20th century.

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Related subjects

Anatomical illustration A neighbouring discipline
Mineralogy & geology A neighbouring discipline
Historical scientific diagrams A neighbouring discipline
Marine & aquatic life A neighbouring discipline
Entomological plates A neighbouring discipline
Celestial charts & astronomy A neighbouring discipline
Zoological illustration A neighbouring discipline
Ornithological plates A neighbouring discipline

By the same hand

Botanical illustration: a curated set CollectionOur curated pick

Plates in this theme

Virgin and Child with Four Angels A representative plate
In proof of true love, a watercarrier skeleton arguing with a woman (Posada); two skeleton angels in upper corners (Manilla) A representative plate
Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds A representative plate
Charity A representative plate
Portrait of a Woman, Possibly a Nun of San Secondo; (verso) Scene in Grisaille A representative plate
Portrait of Alvise Contarini(?); (verso) A Tethered Roebuck A representative plate
Longcase astronomical regulator A representative plate
Processional Cross A representative plate

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