Ferdinand Bauer | Illustrationes florae Novae Hollandiae, London, 1989, limited facsimile edition, no. 27 of 35

Ferdinand Bauer

Illustrationes florae Novae Hollandiae, sive icones generum, quae in Prodromo Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen descripsit Robertus Brown. London: Alecto Historical Editions in association with the British Museum (Natural History), 1989

LIMITED FACSIMILE EDITION, NUMBER 27 OF 35 COPIES, folio (625 x 490mm.), 15 engraved plates by and after Bauer in two states (sepia and bound; hand-coloured by Karen Lightfoot and Helen Wellard and individually bound), original cloth backed marbled boards, all contained within green morocco-backed solander box

"Printed à la poupée, hand-finished in watercolour and published [...] in association with the British Museum (Natural History) in a limited edition of 35 copies. These were the first impressions to be taken from the original plates since 1813" (Alecto Historical Editions).

Ferdinand Bauer (1760-1826) went as an artist of natural history on the coastal survey of New Holland, under the command of Captain Flinders of the HMS Investigator. Robert Brown was the naturalist on this expedition, and both he and Bauer went on the recommendation and at the expense of Sir Joseph Banks. In 1803, after the Investigator was condemned as unseaworthy, Captain Flinders decided to return to England to obtain another ship to complete the expedition. Bauer and Brown, however, continued their travels in Australia, and finally returned to England in 1805 with several thousands of botanical specimens and many hundreds of sketches of plants. In 18[06] Bauer began to publish his Illustrationes florae Novae Hollandiae, a work which did not meet with sufficient encouragement to be continued after the third number' (Henrey 2:195). Ferdinand Bauer's elder brother, Franz Andreas, later explained that the project was abandoned due to Ferdinand's inability to find competent engravers and colourists to complete it, forcing Ferdinand's return to his native Austria. According to Stafleu, fewer than fifty copies were published.

LITERATURE:

First edition: Henrey 2:195; Dunthorne 27; Ferguson 549; Great Flower Books, p. 49; Nissen BBI 96; Pritzel 493; Stafleu TL2 362