LINDEN (J.)

Seven years in the original livraison wrappers, folio, 83 (of 84) parts in 82 livraisons. Text, b/w illustrations and 187 plates (of 190) of which 165 large bright full sheet and unfolded chromolithographs of flowers and leaves, a few heightened with gum arabic, by Pieter De Pannemaeker. [Lacking one plate (Phoenix rupicola) in the first livraison of 1887 and wanting the first livraison of 1892 (with 2 colour plates). With two livraisons in duplicate (3rd livraison of 1889, with 2 colour plates, and first livraison of 1891, with 2 colour plates, thus bringing the total number of colour plates to 169]. First edition.

Almost complete series of the folio-size years of one of the greatest illustrated Belgian horticultural periodicals of the 19^th century. Only seven years were published in this format, the periodical was published in 8vo format between c.1854 and 1886, and between 1894 and 1896. The work features a monthly review of noteworthy plants for the greenhouse and garden.  Included are descriptions, illustrations, history, and advice on cultivating the plants. The prints are particularly noteworthy for the richness of the colouring, resulting from the chromolithographic process used to produce them. They include studies of carnations, begonias, dahlias, gladiolas, chrysanthemums, orchids, calla lilies, azaleas, passion flowers, palms, foliage plants, fruits, a carnivorous pitcher plant, and many others, some arranged as decorative bouquets. “The predecessor publication, L’Illustration Horticole: Journal Spécial des Serres et des Jardins, was founded in 1854 by Ambroise Verschaffelt, a third-generation Belgian nurseryman, in Ghent, Belgium, and edited for its first 16 years by Charles Lemaire, a prominent botanist and professor. In 1869, Jean Jules Linden purchased Verschaffelt’s nursery and took over directorship of the publication. In 1870, he replaced Lemaire with the French horticulturist Edouard André as editor and changed the name to L’Illustration horticole: Revue Mensuelle des Serres et des Jardins, beginning with volume 17. The name was changed again in the 1880s to L’Illustration horticole: Revue mensuelle des Plantes les plus remarquables. From the mid 1880s, orchidologist Émile Rodigas served as editor. This periodical continued until 1896, after which it was combined with Linden’s Le Journal des Orchidées [The Journal of Orchids], also edited by Rodigas, into a new periodical, La Semaine horticole” (Glazer). Jean Jules Linden (1817-1898) was an influential Belgian horticulturist and publisher, especially in the realm of orchids. At age 19, he was selected for a government-sponsored botanical expedition to South and Central America and travelled there until 1844 collecting new orchid species. From 1845, he worked as a plant dealer in Luxembourg and Ghent, eventually founding the nursery Horticulture Internationale in Brussels, where he imported and introduced new plants, including over 1,100 species of orchids. In addition to orchids, Linden is credited with popularizing begonias, camellias, and palm trees to Europe, introducing various species there. During his travels in South America he observed the growing conditions of the tropical plants, enabling him to succeed in cultivating them when he returned to Belgium. His son Lucien Linden eventually joined the business. Pieter De Pannemaeker was a prolific watercolour artist and printmaker active in Ghent, Belgium, in the 19^th century. He specialized in landscapes and botanicals and contributed to many periodicals and publications when Belgium was the leading centre for botanical publishing.

A very clean set.