Original Antique Botanical Print of Licorice and Carob by Bertuch, 1805

Original Antique Botanical Print of Licorice and Carob by Bertuch, 1805

Original antique hand-colored copper engraving depicting two historically important useful plants, Licorice and the Carob Tree, published in Friedrich Justin Bertuch’s celebrated “Bilderbuch für Kinder” in Weimar around 1805.

The plate is titled “Pflanzen LXXXI / Plantes LXXXI” and presents the plants together with detailed illustrations of their flowers, roots, pods and other botanical structures.

Fig. 1 depicts Licorice, a plant cultivated since antiquity for its characteristically sweet root. The illustration includes the flowering plant together with its extensive underground root system and a cut section of the root, emphasizing the commercially and medicinally important part of the plant.

Fig. 2 depicts the Carob Tree, accompanied by its flowers and characteristic large seed pod. Carob has been cultivated around the Mediterranean for centuries, with its naturally sweet pods traditionally used as food and animal fodder.

The plate combines elegant botanical composition with the educational detail characteristic of Bertuch’s natural-history illustrations. Particularly attractive are the soft greens of the foliage, the purple flowers and the large brown pods and root sections.

The engraving is enhanced with original hand coloring and provides a fascinating visual record of two plants valued for food, medicine and commerce at the beginning of the 19th century.

Friedrich Justin Bertuch (1747 to 1822) was a German publisher, writer and patron of the arts. His monumental “Bilderbuch für Kinder” (Picture Book for Children) was one of the great illustrated educational encyclopedias of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, containing hundreds of finely engraved plates covering natural history, geography, science, technology, antiquity and numerous other subjects.

Creator:

Friedrich Justin Bertuch (1747 to 1822)

Source:

Bilderbuch für Kinder

Plate:

Pflanzen LXXXI / Plantes LXXXI

Subjects:

Licorice and Carob Tree

Place of Publication:

Weimar, Germany

Date of Manufacture:

Circa 1805

Period:

Early 19th Century

Style:

Neoclassical, In the Period of

Medium:

Original hand-colored copper engraving on paper

Condition:

Good. Wear consistent with age and use. Light age-related toning and scattered minor spotting and marks. Minor marginal wear and edge irregularities. Original hand coloring remains attractive. Please refer to the photographs for further details of condition.

Please note:

This is an original antique print from the early 19th century, not a modern reproduction. The print is sold unframed. Framed images or interior views, if shown, are for presentation and inspiration only.

Other companion botanical plates from Bertuch’s “Bilderbuch für Kinder” are also available separately.

Keywords:

licorice print, liquorice plant, Glycyrrhiza, carob tree, Ceratonia siliqua, carob pod, medicinal plants, useful plants, edible plants, botanical engraving, antique botanical print, herbal medicine, natural history print, Bertuch print, Friedrich Justin Bertuch, hand colored engraving, early 19th century botanical print