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Highlights from the Royal Society of Medicine
BLACKWELL, Elizabeth (1707-1758)
A Curious Herbal. London: for Samuel Harding, 1739-1737.
Details
BLACKWELL, Elizabeth (1707-1758)
A Curious Herbal. London: for Samuel Harding, 1739-1737.
Second edition of the first herbal illustrated by a woman and one of the earliest English botanical books with hand coloured plates. The Scottish botanist ‘Elizabeth Blackwell prepared A Curious Herbal, at the suggestion of Hans Sloane, as a means of getting her husband, Dr. Alexander Blackwell, out of debtor's prison … Mrs Blackwell’s volumes were undertaken at a time when colored botanical illustrations were rare; and her representations were rightly commended at the time’ (Hunt). Henrey – who used the present copy for the collation in her bibliography – suggests that the presence of letterpress rather than engraved text in this edition is due to: ‘the printsellers who in 1738 started to issue in numbers a pirated edition of the work … and that when the printsellers were prosecuted it was decided to continue and complete this copy with parts and title-pages issued by the unauthorised publisher’ (III, p.10); see also Lisney, pp.118-9 for further analysis. Cleveland Collections 386.5; Great Flower Books (1990, p75 noting new ed. of 1739); Henrey 452 (collating this copy); Hunt 510 (first issue); Lisney 176 (variant title) and 178; Nissen BBI 168 (noting new ed. of 1739); Stafleu & Cowan TL2 545 (noting other issues).
2 volumes, folio (369 x 233mm). First 28 pp. of text in letterpress, the remainder wholly engraved, 500 hand coloured engraved plates, 2 leaves of manuscript index in English at end (plate 209 and adjacent leaf of engraved text stained at corner, manuscript index leaves cut short, soiled and repaired, a few text leaves in vol. 2 lightly stained at extremities of margins and with a few associated tiny nicks and chips, variable – mostly light – scattered browning and spotting). 20th-century pebble-grained roan (extremities rubbed, vol. 1 worn with front cover detached and front cover to vol. 2 coming loose). Provenance: English manuscript index in a 19th-century hand – Royal Society of Medicine (stamps to titles).
A Curious Herbal. London: for Samuel Harding, 1739-1737.
Second edition of the first herbal illustrated by a woman and one of the earliest English botanical books with hand coloured plates. The Scottish botanist ‘Elizabeth Blackwell prepared A Curious Herbal, at the suggestion of Hans Sloane, as a means of getting her husband, Dr. Alexander Blackwell, out of debtor's prison … Mrs Blackwell’s volumes were undertaken at a time when colored botanical illustrations were rare; and her representations were rightly commended at the time’ (Hunt). Henrey – who used the present copy for the collation in her bibliography – suggests that the presence of letterpress rather than engraved text in this edition is due to: ‘the printsellers who in 1738 started to issue in numbers a pirated edition of the work … and that when the printsellers were prosecuted it was decided to continue and complete this copy with parts and title-pages issued by the unauthorised publisher’ (III, p.10); see also Lisney, pp.118-9 for further analysis. Cleveland Collections 386.5; Great Flower Books (1990, p75 noting new ed. of 1739); Henrey 452 (collating this copy); Hunt 510 (first issue); Lisney 176 (variant title) and 178; Nissen BBI 168 (noting new ed. of 1739); Stafleu & Cowan TL2 545 (noting other issues).
2 volumes, folio (369 x 233mm). First 28 pp. of text in letterpress, the remainder wholly engraved, 500 hand coloured engraved plates, 2 leaves of manuscript index in English at end (plate 209 and adjacent leaf of engraved text stained at corner, manuscript index leaves cut short, soiled and repaired, a few text leaves in vol. 2 lightly stained at extremities of margins and with a few associated tiny nicks and chips, variable – mostly light – scattered browning and spotting). 20th-century pebble-grained roan (extremities rubbed, vol. 1 worn with front cover detached and front cover to vol. 2 coming loose). Provenance: English manuscript index in a 19th-century hand – Royal Society of Medicine (stamps to titles).
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