New Book of Flowers/Neues Blumenbuch

by Maria Sibylla Merian, Thomas Burger (Editor)

This exquisitely produced facsimile is a copy of the 1680 Nuremberg edition. The beautiful colors of the original, handcolored by the artist herself, are reproduced here.Vol. I: 80 page facsimile with 36 color plates, including the original title sheet and preface by Maria Sibylla Merian.

Vol. II: Commentary volume in English and German with an essay by Thomas Burger and a biography of the artist with 50 b/w photographs.

Genres: Art, Science, History

80 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1999

About the author

Maria Sibylla Merian was a naturalist and scientific illustrator who studied plants and insects and made detailed paintings about them. Her detailed observations and documentation of the metamorphosis of the butterfly make her a significant contributor to entomology.

Reviews

[Edith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Facsmile of the 17th century artist and scientist Maria Sibylla Merian's beautiful engravings, hand-colored, of flowers and insects. Her first work. The illustrations show flowers in bud, full bloom and decay, often with a gorgeous butterfly or caterpillar. There are garlands and bouquets as well, all beautifully colored. A wonderful source of inspiration for design, as well as a pleasure to examine for its own sake. A biography of Merian and an analysis of the book are included. Highly recommended.

[Darrin]

This is a facsimile edition of the original New Book of Flowers with a short autobiographical sketch at the end of the volume and an additional evaluation of Merian's work from an artistic perspective. There is a short history of floral painting and the importance of and special meaning given to plants and flowers during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.

I would one day like to have a copy of this book.