The 17th
century was a period of great significance in the history of botanical
illustration. Whereas previously plants and herbs had been studied almost
exclusively for their medicinal properties, the 17th century saw the emergence
of a more general appreciation of the natural world.

By the early 1600s, Natural History
was well on the way to becoming an acceptable pastime for educated people and ‘florigelia’
began to replace the "herbals" of the previous century. ‘Florigelium’
are a category of books where the plates are more important than the text. The
earliest florilegia were albums of paintings which their owners had
commissioned as a record of rare and favourite flowers in their gardens. The advent of copper engraving with its
sympathetic interpretation of line, made it possible for such florilegia to be
appreciated by a wider audience.

Theodor de
Bry's Florilegium Novum pioneered
this new class of flower illustration.
Based in Frankfurt, de Bry was a publisher of great significance.
Working with his son Johann and his nephew Johann Israel, he dedicated much of
his life to the successful travel book series Collectiones Peregrination
(1590-1694). Whilst collating topographical information for this series, de Bry
gained access to new information regarding foreign plant species unknown to
many of his contemporaries.

His work is important not only for
the variety of flowers it covers, but also for the verve with which they are
engraved. In their combined energy and accuracy, de Bry's plates would set the
standard for a new era of botanical illustration.