Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1897
Sheet size
24 × 15.9 cm (9.4 × 6.3 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-13692-4-16, -17,- 18
What the condition grades mean
Excellent
Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
Very good
Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
Good
Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
Fair
Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
Condition
Condition report: Very good condition overall. Paper with minor age toning, occasional faint foxing in margins, and light edge wear not affecting the printed area. Vibrant original color preserved. Is sold without the frame.
About this sheet
Three bromeliad plates from Edward Step's Favorite Flowers of Garden and Greenhouse, published in 1897, each printed in color by chromolithography. The sheets show Karatas scheretmetiewi, Aechmea fulgens and Billbergia nutans.
The first plate shows Karatas as a rosette of stiff green leaves with scarlet bracts at its heart, with a spray of roots and three small flower details below. The second shows the tall, branching Aechmea fulgens, its upright stem hung with red berries and small blue-violet flowers, set against two broad green leaves, with a flower detail at the lower left. The third shows Billbergia nutans, with narrow arching leaves, a pink stem and drooping flowers with blue-edged petals and yellow stamens, and a single flower drawn separately beside it.
These plants come from tropical America, and Victorian greenhouse growers prized them for their striking forms and colors. Chromolithography allowed the book to give each plant a lifelike color and a clear botanical drawing.
