London: Printed by Adam Islip, Joice Norton and Richard Whitakers, 1633. Folio, (350 x 230mm) *8, ** - ***6, A-B8, C-Z6, Aa-Zz6, Aaa-Zzz6, 4A-4Z6, 5A-5Z6, 6A-6V6, 6X4, 6Y-6Z6, 7a-7b6 (lacking first blank, but the last blank looks genuine and has a minute wormhole matching the last gatherings), Engraved title, prelims. [xxxvi], text pp. 1-[1632], indices, 23 leaves, profusely illustrated with woodcuts of plants throughout the text, small rusthole in foremargin of title and next 4 leaves [see image], bound in 20c. antique-style sprinkled calf, 6 raised bands, titled in gilt direct to the spine in 2nd compartment, ffep from the previous binding(?). Provenance : Inscription on upper blank margin of the title-page “Johne Levingstonii awcht this book 5 May 1634”. A fine, clean and very tall copy [A1 retains a deckle fore-edge).
The ownership inscription proved to be a teaser, and I wish to thank David Pearson for suggesting a Scottish owner and Bill Zachs for identifying the word awcht as being Middle Scots for “owns”

“Johnson’s Gerarde”, with 2765 woodcuts, is almost half as long again as the first edition (1597) and is, in every respect, immeasurably superior to its predecessor. In a Catalogue of Additions Johnson says “I have thought good to give you the names of all such as are added either in figure or description, or both” and proceeds to give a list of some 880 additions. He was commissioned by the publishers to produce this amended and enlarged edition at short notice in order to forestall Parkinson’s Theatrum Botanicum, believed to be imminent, (it finally appeared in 1640), and he complains bitterly in his preface that he “was forced to performe this task within the compasse of a yeare”, - an almost superhuman effort. Almost all the woodcuts were from a different source from Gerarde’s, (mostly from Plantin’s stock), but some of the figures he drew himself, notably the famous bunch of bananas on page 1516. This had been given him on 10th April 1633 by Dr. Argent, President of the College of Physicians of London, who had received it from Bermuda. Johnson’s drawing is the first illustration of bananas to be published in England. Having drawn and described them, he says - “ the stalke with the fruit thereon I hanged up in my shop, where it became ripe about the beginning of May, and lasted until June” . The shop was in Snow Hill, in the City, and it must have been there also that John Payne studied this unknown fruit before incorporating it into his engraved title-page.
STC 11751 Blunt & Raphael: Illustrated Herbal [1979] p.166 et seq. Henrey. 155