Vol. 2 only (of 4, without Vols. 1, 3, and 4), folio (398 x 247 mm). Title-page printed in red and black; 250 mezzotint plates printed in color and finished by hand (9 double-page), comprising plate nos. 276-525. (A few leaves with some light browning or spotting, but very fresh overall.) Contemporary vellum, covers with peach-stained wide border, central panel with purple- and plum-stained borders, all surrounding a central panel with stained mottling in peach and purple, elaborately gilt, a wide Baroque border surrounding an elaborate central panel, the center set with a large Arabesque of foliate tooling surrounding a fleur-de-lys, smooth spine elaborately gilt with possible remnants of color staining the panels, edges gauffered and gilt, decorative painted paper gilt pastedowns (some minor soiling, covers slightly bowed). Provenance: Paul Girardot de Prefond (d. ca 1800), noted French bibliophile (his armorial bookplate, presumably sold his sale, Paris, Guillaume-François De Bure, 25 April-9 May 1757 lot 378).

FIRST AND ONLY EDITION of the second volume of Weinmann's work, the first to employ color printing. One of the most magnificent plant books of the era, the plates produced using the so-called Teyler color printing process, a combination of etching and mezzotint. The engravings were based on Weinmann's own collection of plants, and he financed the work; it includes plates after Johann Jakob Haid, Bartholomäus Seutter, Johann Elias Ridinger and, most notably, the first published plates by G. D. Ehret. Ehret, who later engraved the plates for Trew's Plantae selectae, created several hundred plates for the present work, but his name does not appear in the work following a dispute with Weinmann over poor payment. Dunthorne 327; Hunt 494; Nissen BBI 2126; Stafleu-Cowan TL2 17.050.

THE PAUL GIRARDOT DE PREFOND COPY. A FINE COPY, FROM ONE OF THE MOST CELEBRATED BOOK COLLECTIONS OF THE 18TH CENTURY.