Chap, i.] from Bnuifcls to Kaspar Bauhin. ig 



the first herbaria in our sense of the word ; one of the first 

 collections of the kind, perhaps of the date of 1559, was the 

 herbarium formed by Ratzenberger, which was discovered in 

 the museum at Cassel a few years since and described by 

 Kessler. 



These are matters somewhat external to our immediate sub- 

 ject, but they show how lively an interest was taken in botany 

 in the latter half of the sixteenth century ; this is still more 

 shown by the great number of books of plants, published with 

 numerous and expensive plates and in some cases going through 

 several editions. But the artistic and scientific value of the 

 drawings, which were appended to the descriptions and in later 

 herbals were reckoned by thousands, did not keep equal pace 

 with their number ; Fuchs' splendid figures remained unap- 

 proached, and gradually, as the distance from Diirer's time 

 increased, the woodcuts grew smaller and poorer 1 , and some- 

 times even quite indistinct. The art of describing on the 

 contrary continually improved ; the descriptions became fuller, 

 and gradually a certain method appeared in assigning marks 

 and in estimating their value ; critical remarks on the identity 

 or non-identity of species, the separation of forms previously 

 considered to be alike, and similar matters occur more frequently. 

 The descriptions in de l'Ecluse may in fact claim to be called 

 scientific ; in Kaspar Bauhin they appear in the form of terse 

 and methodical diagnoses. 



The most remarkable thing to us in these descriptions from 

 Fuchs and Bock to Bauhin is the striking neglect of the flowers 

 and fruit. The earliest descriptions, especially those of Bock, 

 endeavour to depict the form of the plant in words, to render 

 directly the impression on the senses ; special attention was 

 paid to the shape of the leaves, the nature of the ramification, 

 the character of the roots, the size and colour of the flowers. 



1 See L. C. Treviranus in his work, 'Die Anwendung des Holzschnitts 

 zur bildlichen Darstellung dcr Pflanzen,' Leipzig, 1S55, and Choulant, 

 ' Graphische Incunabeln,' Leipzig, 1858. 



C 2 



