Product Description

features two hundred and fifty stunning photographs by HasselbladLaureate Award winner Jonathan Singer, representingGin the words of an ARTnewscriticGrare or exotic plants and flowers Gin large scale and exquisite detail, emergingfrom the shadows in a manner evocative of Old Master paintings.G

The original edition of , consisting of five lavishly hand-boundvolumes, was limited to just ten copies, the first of which was recently donated to theSmithsonian Institution. The extra-large Gdouble-elephantG format of that editionwas chosen in homage to the famous double-elephant folio of The Birds of America,and indeed, is one of the few works of natural history ever to rivalAudubonGs magnum opus in its scope and artistry. In praise of the double-elephant folioof , the SmithsonianGs Chairman of Botany attested, GEveryone whohas seen the photographs . . . has been tremendously impressed with the power, scale,and depth of the work.G

Now SingerGs remarkable images are available to the public for the first time in thisbaby-elephant folio of . Like the larger edition, this volume is organizedinto five alphabetically arranged sections, each introduced by a gatefold page thatdisplays one extraordinary plant at a luxurious size. Each pictured plant is accompaniedby a clear and accessible description of its botany, geography, folklore, history, and conservation.

This volume is also available in a leatherbound, slipcased edition. With its marvelousreproductions and fascinating text, the baby-elephant folio of isone of the most impressive volumes of natural history ever published.