Gianbattista Morandi Botanical Illustrations Hardcover Journal — Historia Botanica Practica 1744

In 1744, the Italian botanist Gianbattista Morandi published Historia Botanica Practica in Milan — one of the most elegant works of Enlightenment-era botanical illustration, combining scientific rigour with the ornate visual language of 18th-century natural history publishing.

The front cover features Morandi's meticulously rendered floral plates: delicate botanical specimens — petals, leaves, and stems drawn with anatomical precision — framed by ornate borders in Prussian blue, the synthetic pigment that had transformed European painting and printmaking since its discovery in Berlin in 1704. The back cover presents additional specimens from the Historia Botanica in the same formal, symmetrical arrangement that characterised Italian botanical illustration of the period.

Product Details

• Format: Hardcover journal
• Pages: 150 lined pages (75 sheets) with perforations for easy removal
• Binding: Casewrap sewn binding — flexible and lay-flat
• Dimensions: 5.75 × 8 inches
• Weight: 100 g
• Cover: Matte laminated full-wrap print
• Note: small production barcode (0.5" × 0.5") on back cover

Perfect For

• Botanists and horticulturists documenting plant specimens with historical reverence
• Gardeners cultivating heirloom varieties and heritage gardens
• Herbalists recording medicinal plant properties and preparations
• Art historians and collectors of botanical illustration
• Nature journalers who appreciate 18th-century natural history
• An elegant gift for lovers of botanical art and Enlightenment-era science

Read more about Morandi and the art of practical botany: The Art of Practical Botany — When Science Was Beautiful