What Inspires Me? The Book of Plants - The Complete Plates

What inspires me?


What makes my heart ....



...and creative spirit...






...want to make a new paper cut sculpture?



TASCHEN 25 - Special edition!A magnificent pictorial document of the flowers grown in the greatest German garden of its time, the Book of Plants is in a class of its own when it comes to the variety and range of flowers engraved. Working under Basilius Besler, a team of at least ten engravers worked on this massive project, translating in situ and specimen drawings faithfully to copper plates.


Nearly four hundred years old, the book has survived though the gardens did not; they were destroyed by invading Swedish troops in 1634. However, in 1998 a reconstruction of the original garden opened to the public in Eichstätt. This facsimile's reproductions - structured by seasons - are taken from a hand-painted edition, one of only a few still extant.

In auction, the asking price for a first edition copy is half a million dollars. You can now enjoy its unique qualities for somewhat less.


About the authors:Prof. Dr. Werner Dressendörfer, pharmaceutical historian and lecturer at the university of Erlangen, is currently conducting research into the history of medicinal plants from a socio-cultural viewpoint. He has authored numerous pharmaceutical publications and scientific papers on the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance.


Klaus Walter Littger is head of the manuscript department at Eichstätt University Library. In addition to essays on German language and literature, he has published a number of papers on the history of the University of Eichstätt and the history of music at Eichstätt. He is editor of a periodical and a series of publications on the history of Eichstätt.