The Plants

Gerard, John (1545–1612)
The Herball, or, Generall Historie of Plants
London: Printed by Adam Islip, Joice Norton and Richard Whitakers, 1636.

This English herbal is part of a literary tradition going back to the
Ancient Greeks. Grecian herbals originally used detailed hand-drawn
illustrations, but found copying simple pictures with a long list of the
plant's physical attributes easier. This would be the de facto mode of
illustrating herbals until prints rose to popularity in the 15th and 16th
centuries. The woodcut’s ability to capture and replicate fine detail
made them perfect for portraying nature.

This herbal’s 400+ unique woodcuts ensure ease of recognition in the
wild, and the plant descriptions are written in 9 different languages that
include Welsh, German, and Dutch. It also includes plants from around
the globe, not just from the British Isles.