Australian Baeckia Virgata, beautiful Heath Myrtle. Henry Andrews c1810.

by Andrews, Henry

Australian native. Baeckia virgata, exquisite Henry Andrews engraving c1810.

In the Preface to English botanist, Henry Andrews's first publication of The Botanist's Repository, comprising colour'd engravings of new and rare plants only, Andrews noted that he was "satisfied, nothing contributed so much to repress the ardour of young botanists as the difficulty of affixing the right name to those plants, which, (from a captious desire in every publisher, to foist in something of his own coinage, upon the most trifling supposed difference,) have undergone several changes of title."

Beautiful, rare finely engraved and contemporary-coloured copperplate engraving by Henry C. Andrews (Henry Cranke Andrews) (1770-1830), for his The Botanist’s Repository, comprising colour’d engravings of new and rare plants only published in London between 1797 and 1815. Andrews drew, engraved and coloured 664 botanical specimens, most of which were quite different from any previously seen in Britain. They included many exotic species from Australia and South Africa - including this beauty, Plate 598. Andrews printed from engraved plates that were almost as large as the page so page edges are imperfect and plate mark is often cropped for publication. The plates were printed by T. Bensley and published by Andrews. 

Despite being over 200 years old, this page is in exceptional condition - except for a faint horizontal crease toward the top.
Page size is 27 x 21cm.