William Curtis Shrubby Chironia Frutescens, Sowerby hand-coloured engraving c1788.

by Sowerby, James

William Curtis antique botanical print.

Drawn and engraved on a copper plate by James Sowerby for Curtis's The Botanical Magazine; or Flower-Garden Displayed published in London c1790. Illustrations for The Botanical Magazine have always been revered - for their scientific accuracy as well as their beauty.

In 1787 when he was Praefectus Hortis (Horticultural Manager) of Chelsea Physic Garden in London, William Curtis (1746-1799) began publication of The Botanical Magazine “in response.. to solicitations for a work... (combining) Botany and Gardening”. Illustrating botanical specimens from around the world, this publication has been published continuously for nearly 240 years - with changes in illustration method as technology changed. It is now called Kew Magazine.

Beautifully engraved and hand-coloured hundreds of years ago. Page size approximately 235 x 145mm (9 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches). To the intaglio impression measures 200 x 115mm (7 7/8 x 4 1/2 inches)