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Plants of the New World. -- [DRAKE, Sir Francis]

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Antwerp: Christopher Plantin, 1582. 8vo (163 x 103 mm). 13 full-page and 2 half-page woodcuts of exotic plants depciting the plants discovered on Drake's voyage including a woodcut of cocoa beans, final blanks present. Bound, with two other treatises published by Plantin, in contemporary limp vellum. Condition: minor toning to text; vellum stained at edges. Acquisition: purchased from Martayan Lan (1998), $10,800. an attractive unsophisticated copy of the first edition of the first substantial account of drake's voyage bound with two other rare works on the plants of the new world. Clusius, one of the foremost botanists of his era, gives an account of the aromatic plants, fruits, and roots observed by Drake on his momentous circumnavigation of the world 1577 to 1580, during which he sailed the California coast from San Francisco to Point Reyes. The botanical descriptions are taken from Lawrence Eliot, an amateur naturalist who accompanied Drake's expedition. Also mentioned in the text is Sir William Winter who also sailed with Drake. Adams C-240. European Americana 582/52: "Described are various American plants, cocoa & Mexican jasmine." Arents (Add.) 69. JCB I:294. Cushing L114. Hunt Botanical Catalogue 140. Nissen 373. Pritzel 1757. Sabin 13800 [Bound with:] ACOSTA, Cristóbal (c.1515-c.1592). Aromatum & medicamentorum in Orientali India nascentium... Antwerp: Plantin, 1582.Title with woodcut printers device. 2 full-page woodcuts. (Bound first.) European Americana 582/75; Sabin 57665n; Nissen ZBI 3na; Hunt 139. Acosta's work is often found, as here, to include his translations of two Spanish treatises on medicinal plants. The first is an abbreviated translation of Acosta's Tractado de las Drogas (Burgos 1578), which mentions Brazilian rubber and pineapples. The second is a translation of part 3 of Monardes' Historia medicinal (Seville 1580). [Bound with:] MONARDES, Nicolas (1498-1588). Simplicium medicamentorum ex novo orbe delatorum, quorum in medicina usus est, historia... Antwerp: Christopher Plantin, 1582. Title with woodcut printers device. 1 full-page and 1 text woodcut. European Americana 582/57a; Sabin 49943; Medina (BHA) 274 Arents (Add.) 64.

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