Beschreibung:

ALDINI, Tobia (17th. century) and Pietro CASTELLI (ca 1575-1657). Exactissima descriptio rariorum quarundam plantarum...in Horto Farnesiano. Rome: Jacob Maseardi, 1625. 2 o (325 x 223 mm). Engraved title by "L.C.", 22 engraved plates and 5 woodcut illustations in text (scattered light foxing, staining to endpapers). Contemporary vellum (some light staining, minor wear to head of spine). FIRST EDITION of this catalogue of rare plants in the Farnese gardens. "Aldini presents various rare plants from the unique collection of the Farnese family, which due to its close ties with the Jesuit Order, frequently obtained seeds and specimens of exotic plants from priests returning to Rome after long periods abroad. The enthusiasm with which these plants were received in Rome during the first decades of the seventeenth century is well documented: new species were avidly sought after and grown in private gardens, constituting objects of prestige to be vaunted in cultivated circles." " Exactissima descriptio is divided into sixteen chapters, each one of which is devoted to a particular plant. A complete description of the plant, as well as details concerning its medicinal and culinary properties, are provided, while elegantly engraved plates aid the reader to grasp its salient characteristics... Although the name of the artist who made the preparatory drawings for this work is not known, the engraver can be identified as the same artist who signed the frontispiece, Luca Ciamberlano (1586-1641), then working in Rome as an engraver of religious, classical and allegorical subjects and as a designer of frontispieces. It is known that Castelli was an accomplished draughtsman with regard to plants, and it is quite possible that he was responsible for these high-quality plates..." ( Cleveland ). The authorship of this work has been debated. Hunt 208; Cleveland Collections 172; Nissen BBI 13; Oak Spring Flora 28; Pritzel 1590 (as Castelli).