Hand-coloured and colour-printed in aquatint and line by Caldwell. Sight size: 20 x 15 1/4 inches. Gold-leaf frame, "Amiran" archival glass, with UV protection and an anti-reflective surface. Framed size: 27 3/4 x 22 3/4 inches. The most strikingly beautiful flower plates ever to be printed in England. A very fine view of the exotic Indian Reed Canna indica L. Thornton, during "the colour-finishing by hand.got his colourists to add five petals, one in each flower, and a long pointed bud at the top of the spike. The final process of hand-colouring.added greatly to the effectiveness of a number of Thornton's plates.but this is the only one where he took such.action that it altered the character of the plate.[For the second state Henderson effectively replaced the hand-painted changes of the first state] and the augmented red flower spike stands out boldly against the sky. The large leaves at the bottom are beautifully lit. The plant itself, Canna indica, the well-known garden plant still much used for formal bedding, needs no description. The background river is presumably the Ganges, and the tall pagoda adds an eastern touch" (Ronald King, The Temple of Flora by Robert Thornton, 1981, p.106). Thornton's The Temple of Flora is the greatest English colour-plate flower book. ".[Thornton] inherited a competent fortune and trained as a doctor. He appears to have had considerable success in practice and was appointed both physician to the Marylebone Dispensary and lecturer in medical botany at Guy's and St. Thomas's hospitals. But quite early in his career he embarked on his.great work. What Redouté produced under the patronage of L'Héritier, Marie Antoinette, the Empress Josephine, Charles X, and the Duchesse de Berry, Thornton set out to do alone.Numerous important artists were engaged.twenty-eight paintings of flowers [were] commissioned from Abraham Pether, known as 'Moonlight Pether,' Philip Reinagle,.Sydenham Edwards, and Peter Henderson.The result.involved Thornton in desperate financial straits.In an attempt to extricate himself he organized the Royal Botanic Lottery, under the patronage of the Prince Regent.It is easy to raise one's eyebrows at Thornton's unworldly and injudicious approach to publishing.But he produced.one of the loveliest books in the world" (Alan Thomas, Great Books and Book Collecting, pp.142-144). Seller Inventory # 38561

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Bibliographic Details

Title: The Indian Reed

Publisher: London

Publication Date: 1804

Store Description

Donald A. Heald Rare Books offers the finest examples of antiquarian books and prints in the areas of Botany, Ornithology, Natural History, Americana & Canadiana, Native Americans, Voyages & Travels, Maps & Atlases, Photography and more. Founded in England in 1972, we have formed and contributed to important private and institutional collections. Items of note which we have placed include a unique copy of Abbot?s "Natural History of the Rarer Lepidopterous Insects of Georgia" with plates on vellum, an extremely rare extra-illustrated large paper Spanish edition of Blaeu?s "Atlas Mayor," Curtis's "North American Indian," a copy of the Federalist Papers in boards, the first separate printing of the Bill of Rights, and a large paper issue of Redouté's "Les Roses" with the plates in two states. We are renowned for our extensive print inventory which is unsurpassed in quality. Our Sporting collection recently incorporated the complete print stock of Ackermann & Son of London, established in 1783. We are members of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America, where Mr. Heald has served on the Board of Governors as Treasurer, Security Chairperson, and as Chairman of the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair. We are members of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers, and the American Historical Print Collectors Society. Mr. Heald is a member of the Grolier Club, and the American Antiquarian Society.

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Members of these associations are committed to maintaining the highest standards. They vouch for the authenticity of all items offered for sale. They provide expert and detailed descriptions, disclose all significant defects and/or restorations, provide clear and accurate pricing, and operate with fairness and honesty during the purchase experience.

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Donald A. Heald Rare Books (ABAA)
NY, U.S.A.

Terms of Sale:

To order, please telephone or e-mail. Payment may be made by Visa, MasterCard, Discover, America Express, check, or by wire transfer (please ask for details). Paypal funds should be sent to info@donaldheald.com. Any purchase may be returned within ten days of receipt. We ask that you notify us of the return as soon as possible. Donald Heald, Donald Heald Rare Books, 124 East 74th Street, New York, NY 10021. Telephone: 212-744-3505. Email: info@donaldheald.com.

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