FIRST DANISH ILLUSTRATED HERBAL

PAULLI, SIMON

Flora Danica Det er: Dansk Urtebog: Vdi huilcken, efter hans Kongl: Mayst... høylofligst Ihukommelse Christiani IV....skriftlig Befalning til Facultatem Medicam, udi det Kongelig Universiteet Kiøbenhafn, icke alleeniste Vrternes Historiske Beskrifvelse, Kraftyer oc Virckninger, med zijrligste Figurer andragis: Men endocsaa Lægedomme til alle Siugdomme gafnlige, korteligen oc klarligen antegnis: Saa at den er baade en Vrtebog oc Lægebog.

Kiøbenhafn, Melchiore Martzan, (1647-) 1648.

4to. In contemporary half calf with four raised bands. Wear to extremities. Previous owner's name to pasted down front end-paper. Ex-libris pasted on to pasted down front end-paper. Two-line annotation in Latin dated 1712 to front free end-paper. First leaves with marginal dampstaining. F. 379 missing lower outer corner, but a leaf from another copy loosely inserted. Last 188 ff. depicting various flowers with annotations in contemporary hand and with occassional rudimentary handcoloring. With occassional marginal brownspotting throughout. 
(18), 3-393, (48) ff. +  376 full page woodcuts of plants on 188 ff., frontispiece, engraved half-title and 4 plates depicting the four seasons (complete).

First edition of the first illustrated Danish Herbarium, a seminal work in the history of Danish botanical literature. The work is widely regarded as being one the most beautiful and lavishly illustrated Danish 17th century prints.
The first part of this work was published in Copenhagen in 1648. The second part (containing the attractive four woodcut titles and plant woodcuts) was published at Antwerp by Plantin in 1647, the Danish printers not having the facilities or expertise to do the job themselves. Most of the woodcuts are taken from Clusius and L’Obel.

Nissen BBI, 1497
Birkelund, 50.
Biblioteca Danica II, 188.
Thesaurus 589.

Order-nr.: 61258