TRADESCANT, John.

Musaeum Tradescantianum: or, a Collection of Rarities. Preserved at South-Lambeth neer London.

> click here to see the full size image.

Engraved armorial frontis.; two finely engraved ports. of the Tradescants, father and son, by Wenceslaus Hollar; & a large woodcut printer's device on title. 13 p.l. (incl. frontis. & two ports.), 179, [4] pp. 8vo, cont. speckled calf (head of spine & corners a little worn, gutter edge of title stuck to frontis. with loss of a few letters), spine gilt. London: J. Grismond for N. Brooke, 1656. First edition "of this important early English catalogue, compiled by Elias Ashmole and Dr Thomas Wharton with the publishing expenses met by Tradescant. The elder Tradescant had died in 1638 and the 'Ark', as his house and cabinet in Lambeth was known, was already an established museum by 1634 (only six years after he moved in)...The Tradescant collection was almost entirely the creation of the elder Tradescant although it was John Tradescant who kept it open to the public, arranged for the production of the catalogue and ultimately bequeathed it to Oxford... "Ashmole's catalogue is divided into two parts, the second part being the Hortus Tradescantianus or description of over seventeen hundred plants collected by the Tradescants. An early version of this horticultural catalogue had been prepared in 1634 and it seems likely that this section was largely the work of Tradescant the younger updating his father's notes. The first section dealing with the curiosities and rarities divides them into sections of birds, mammals, fishes, shells, insects, minerals, fruits, 'mechanicks', miscellaneous rarities, weapons of war, garments and ornaments, domestic utensils, coins and medals. Much of the cataloguing was clearly based on earlier notes by Tradescant the elder but Ashmole took great 'paines, care and charge' over a period of years to produce a definitive list, and in 1659 he was rewarded by the gift of the entire collection for a token shilling payment. This deed of gift was later contested by Tradescant's widow, Hester, who sold portions of the collection remaining in her care, until her death in 1678. Ashmole began negotiating with Oxford University in 1675 as sole donor of the collection and by 1679 work had begun on the building of the Museum which was to become the Ashmolean and a permanent home for the Musaeum Tradescantium... "One unusual feature of Ashmole's catalogue, rarely found in comparable continental descriptions of Wunderkammern, is the list of 'Principall Benefactors to the precedent Collection' which is found at the end of the book. This list was probably compiled during the lifetime of the elder Tradescant, and gives a valuable indication of the sources of the collection. It includes figures from the circle of his two great patrons, the Earl of Salisbury and the Duke of Buckingham, many of whose friends, agents and pensioners appear on the list, as well as travellers like Thomas Herbert and Richard Ligon."­Grinke, From Wunderkammer to Museum, 72. Both of the Tradescants were royal gardeners and important plant collectors. The father was the first botanist to visit Russia and the son collected plants in Virginia in 1637. Many American plants are listed in this catalogue. A very good crisp copy of a rare book. Portion of title detached. Wing T-2005.

• USD 9,500.00 > 其他币种价格
• 订书号：: HillBibl-590

• 书商: Jonathan A. Hill, Bookseller, Inc. (USA)