Leiden : Cornelius Haak 1774. Second Edition
2 vols large folio, (445x285mm), vol.I title, [3] lls, 175 plates (NB. 167bis), Vol.II title, [3] lls, plates 175 - 324, together 325 finely engraved plates printed on heavy paper, uncut, (deckle edges on 3 sides), contemporary vellum, labels stained to spine and tooled in gilt, the edges of the boards gnawed by a squirrel, otherwise a very good copy of this magnificent collection of plates
This second edition was issued without the original text, but with a new index of Linnaean names. It is the most important 18th-century work on an English botanical collection in private hands, being the collection of the botanist and apothecary, James Sherard, of Eltham, near Greenwich. According to Hunt, "Dillenius made the gardens memorable through excellent illustrations, drawn and engraved by himself. They were sufficiently accurate to be of considerable service to Linnaeus". Particular attention is paid in this work to succulent plants, particularly mesembryanthemums and it is of major importance in the pre-Linnaean taxonomy of South African plants.
“Dillenius was a native of Darmstadt who, coming to England in 1721 adopted Ray’s system [of botanical classification] and became, on Dr William Sherard’s benefaction (1728) professor at Oxford and one of the important botanists of his time.” - Hunt
Reference: botany