Hand-coloured copper engravings with bold studies
on citrus fruits and some with allegorical scenes on
the Hesperides, the custodians of the tree with the
immortality-given golden apples, planted from the fruit
branches that Gaia gave to Hera as a wedding gift when
Hera accepted Zeus.
From "Hesperides sive de Malorum Aureorum Cultura
et Usu Libri Quatuor" by Giovanni Battista Ferrari
(c1582-1655). One of the most splendid and scientifically
precise botanical works of the 17th century. The illustrations
were designed by the foremost artists of that time,
including Nicolas Poussin and Guido Reni (see single
pages), and were mainly engraved by the Dutch printmaker
Cornelius Bloemaert (1603-1684). The work was published
by Hermann Scheus, Rome 1646.
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