1877 album of 40 botanical watercolors

Oblong 16mo, 4 x 6 inches. Cloth-backed leatherette boards with handsome gilt stamped cover. Sold by stationer L. Ribaut in Pau, where the drawings begin in July 23 and span to August 29, 1877, showing sure improvement in drafting quality while retaining a charming naiveté. 40 watercolor drawings on 38 leaves (4 loose). Minor to moderate foxing on various leaves, which include several toned papers with interesting offsetting. A thin strip of Japanese paper between two leaves secures the textblock, though the individual leaves would be easily--and beautifully--removed for display. The four loose plates have been loosely mounted in archival corners.

Superbly rendered and encompassing a range of plant life recorded over five weeks during the summer of 1877. While some appear fairly faithful-intended renderings, some of the later specimens show elements of stylization. Specimens are labeled, some with additional notes about potential variations in the petals, etc.