152 NATURAL SCIENCE. September, 



The elder, Francis, was born at Feldsberg, in Austria, in 1 758. In 1 788 

 lie came to England, and was induced by Sir Joseph Banks to remain 

 as draughtsman to the Royal Gardens at Kew, Sir Joseph himself 

 defraying the salary during his own life, and providing in his will for its 

 continuance. Bauer spent the rest of his days at Kew, and died there 

 in 1841, in the eighty-third year of his age. His numerous drawings 

 of the plants of the Gardens are now preserved in the British Museum. 

 A selection was published in 1796, under the title " Delineations of 

 Exotick Plants cultivated in the Royal Gardens at Kew," but three 

 parts only, consisting entirely of heaths, were published. He also 

 prepared an elaborate series illustrating the structure of the grain, the 

 germination and growth of the wheat-plant ; these are well described 

 by his biographer in the Pvoceedings of the Linnean Society (i. [1841] 

 p. 102) as " perhaps the most splendid and important monument of 

 Mr. Bauer's extraordinary talents as an artist and skill in microscopic 

 investigation." Within the last few years Mr. Carruthers has, under 

 the auspices of the Royal Agricultural Society, reproduced a selection 

 of these in sheet form, illustrating the life-history of the wheat- 

 plant from seed to seed. Another beautiful and detailed series of 

 drawings of orchids supplied material for Lindley's " Illustrations 

 of Orchidaceous Plants." 



Ferdinand Bauer was born at Feldsberg two years after his 

 brother. It is of interest to note that the father held the appoint- 

 ment of painter to Prince Lichtenstein. When only fifteen years 

 old Ferdinand was employed in making miniature drawings of 

 plants from nature. In 1784 he accompanied Dr. Sibthorp to 

 Greece, and the completion of the numerous drawings made on the 

 journey occupied several years after his return ; he was, in fact, thus 

 engaged in England at the time of his brother's arrival. In 1801 we 

 find him selected by Sir Joseph Banks to go with Captain Flinders 

 as natural history painter to Australia, Robert Brown being the 

 naturalist. When Captain Flinders went back to Europe, Brown 

 and Bauer remained behind in New South Wales. Before returning 

 home, in 1805, Bauer also spent eight months in Norfolk Island, 

 collecting and making drawings of the plants, and from these materials 

 Endlicher compiled the "Prodromus Florae Norfolkicae." In 1813 he 

 began his " Illustrationes Florae Novae Hollandia?," a magnificent 

 undertaking, which, however, met with so little encouragement that 

 only three parts were published, the artist in the meantime retiring in 

 disgust to Hitzing, near Vienna, and the large botanic gardens of 

 Schonbrunn. Except for a visit to England in i8ig, and occasional 

 botanical excursions into the Austrian and Styrian Alps, the remainder 

 of his life was spent near the Austrian capital, his chief occupation 

 being the drawing of the more remarkable plants which flowered in the 

 Imperial Gardens. He died in March, 1826. His paintings of Aus- 

 tralian plants passed into Robert Brown's hands, and subsequently 

 became the property of the British Museum. 



