Rare 1812 Hand-Colored Copperplate Engraving from:

William Curtis'
'The Botanical Magazine or Flower-Garden Displayed':

No. 1474 ALOE SOCCOTRINA (ß.) PURPURASCENS
or LARGEST SOCCOTRINE ALOE


From early volumes of "The Botanical Magazine; or Flower-Garden Displayed" comes this original, Double, fold-out folio copperplate engraving, a rare & sought-after large-format plate from the scarce early volumes.

This listing is for the one of the more stunning plates from the above work titled thus: [No. 1474] ALOE SOCCOTRINA (ß.) PURPURASCENS or LARGEST SOCCOTRINE ALOE.

I'm listing a superb collection of these very scarce folio, fold-out, largest hand-colored engravings from this most important publication documenting the discovery of these flowers.

The Double-sized fold-out plates were reserved for the showiest, most dramatic, largest flowers. They were very rare in the series, & yet much more rare in the market, as they can often make the most impressive framed wall-art in terms of scale & image & are sought-after if & when one can be found.

Included in the images are a couple of pages of history on William Curtis & the Botanical Magazine, from the Curtis Museum (https://www.hampshireculture.org.uk/curtis-museum).

This plate is one of the classics of the Curtis volumes & Likely a First Edition print, which are generally very rare. Appears to be on the original wove paper, which came to be used in the early years of the 1800's.

The publication:  The "Botanical Magazine" was first published in 1787 by William Curtis (1746-1799). After the death of William Curtis, the magazine was published by his brother, Thomas Curtis. Later, Samuel Curtis (a son-in-law of William Curtis) became proprietor from 1801 to 1845. The prints in the first volumes were copper plates colored by hand. Some of the later prints were lithographs.

Some of the distinguished artists were Sydenham Edwards, John Curtis, William Jackson Hooker, W.H. Fitch, William Graves and Matilda Smith. These prints have a universal beauty and are a lasting documentary contribution to botanical studies.

The Artists: This plate was engraved & hand-colored after a painting by Sydenham Edwards & is signed by 'Syd. Edwards del.' (Sydenham Teak Edwards, 1768 - 1819) as well as the engraver, 'F. Sansom Sc.' (Francis Sansom, active 1785-1799).

The drawing & composition are fluid, bold, lyrical, the coloring is subtle & delicate. It's a beautiful plate, full of the passion that the early flower painters, botanists & gardeners had for these amazing flowers, many of which were discovered in the pristine reaches of the ever-expanding British Empire & by intrepid explorers of the time.

These gorgeously drawn, engraved & water-colored original prints were presented on their page with consistently balanced, beautiful compositions.

Every part of these prints was made by hand: Hand drawn & engraved on Copper which was hand-mined, smelted & rolled, printed onto handmade cotton rag paper, inked & colored with hand-ground pigments individually by hand, & they were usually hand sewn into handmade leather-bound books.

Condition: Appears to be in excellent condition. The hand-coloring remains sharp & brilliant. The folds in this one are as-issued & appear in all copies I've seen of this plate, as it's a 'fold-out' & much larger than the rest which were octavo-sized bookplates.

These prints are very old & may have minor imperfections expected with age, such as some typical age-toning of the paper, oxidation of the old original watercolors, spots, text-offsetting, artifacts from having been bound into a book, etc. Please examine the photos & details carefully.

Text Page(s): This one comes without its original text pages.

About this gorgeous flower:

  • Aloe succotrina, also known as Aloe perryi or commonly the Fynbos aloe, is an aloe which is endemic to Cape Town and the south-western corner of the Western Cape, South Africa
  • Its natural habitat is rocky areas. It is one of a number of Aloe species that naturally occur on the island of Socotra
  • The juice of Aloe perryi has important pharmaceutical and medicinal properties. 

Size: 9 x 11-1/2" inches approximately.

Shipping: Multiple prints combine into one USPS Flat-Rate envelope. If you'd like to combine & need more time to choose, please send a message & we'll do our best to oblige. If you're assessed multiple shipping for one combined package, we'll endeavor to refund any overage asap.

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