von Martius. The Book of Palms

by H. Walter Lack

On December 15, 1868, Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius (1794–1868), Professor of Botany at the University of Munich and director of the Royal Botanic Garden, was carried to his grave in a coffin covered with fresh palm leaves. These were a reference to his groundbreaking Historia naturalis opus tripartitum (Natural History of a work in three volumes), published between 1823 and 1853. At the time, this encyclopedic treasury contained the sum of human knowledge on the topic, and included 240 exquisite chromolithographic illustrations, including landscape views of palm habitats and botanical dissections. This epic folio was based on von Martius’s expedition to Brazil and Peru with zoologist Johann Baptist von Spix, sponsored by King Maximilian I of Bavaria, to investigate natural history and native tribes. From 1817 to 1820 the pair traveled over 2,250 km (1,400 miles) throughout the Amazon basin, the most species-rich palm region in the world, collecting and sketching specimens. On their return both men were awarded knighthoods and lifetime pensions. In his epic work, von Martius outlined the modern classification of palm, produced the first maps of palm biogeography, described all the palms of Brazil, and collated the sum of all known genera of the palm family. Apart from his own collection of specimens and notes, von Martius also wrote about the findings of others. Von Martius’s folio is unusual in its inclusion of cross-sectioned diagrams, conveying the architecture of these mighty trees, which central Europeans would have found hard to imagine accurately. Equally remarkable are the color landscapes showing various palms―often standing alone―which have a simple and elegant beauty. This famous work is an unrivaled landmark in botanic illustration and taxonomy.

Genres: Coffee Table Books, Art, Nature, Nonfiction

412 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Hans Walter Lack

Reviews

[Paul Bauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic back in print with lovely plates and at an affordable price.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Von 1817-1820 reiste Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius nach Brasilien um dort Flora und Fauna zu erforschen. Diese Reise war die Basis dieses umfangreichen Buchs über Palmenarten.
Dieses Buch hat einen großen Beitrag für die Botanik geleistet. Somit hält man mit diesem Buch ein Stück Geschichte in den Händen. Besonders sind die beeindruckenden Illustrationen, die einen enorm hohen Detailgrad aufweisen. Für mich war dieses Buch wie ein Museumbesuch - nur in den eigenen vier Wänden. Bei solch einem umfangreichen Werk hätte ich mir allerdings deutlich mehr Informationen erhofft. Aus diesem Grund gab es auch einen Stern Abzug. Zusammenfassend kann ich jedoch sagen, dass dieses Buch in meiner Sammlung bleiben wird und ich bestimmt immer mal wieder hineinblättern werde.

[Agne C · Rating 4 out of 5]

While reading the book, I was reminiscing about all the palms that I had, nurtured, enjoyed, eventually killed. I remember when the first one bloomed - thought that it was some kind of a disease as I had never seen a palm blossoming before. The things we take for granted.
This book is a visual treat. Such a huge and great collection. What an adventure it must have been to travel in Amazon forests and gather samples. Gives a bit of a different perspective for the plants that one can now find in every store.

[Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Como todos los que he leído de Taschen, una maravilla. No conocía la historia de Martius y su gran aporte a la ciencia, que resumen al inicio del libro. Después, es la recolección de las láminas de su tomos de las palmeras en una calidad exquisita. Las láminas recogidas son láminas botánicas de diferentes especies de palmeras, así como paisajes de Brasil.

[ZZ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A visual treat. Each page demonstrates the sophistication and the quality devoted to document palm species around the world known to Martius' time. Makes me want to plant (and perhaps you) some of the palms from the book in my garden. Alas, they are hard to find.

[Fangtasia]

Læser også en dansk bog: "Håndbog om Palmer i Haven" af Henrik Pedersen (2022) som handler om pamler og deres muligheder for at gro i Danske haver. Bogen er dog ikke på goodreads