1739 Pineapple, ananas, colour printed mezzotint, large folio, Weinmann, botany

Hand-coloured mezzotint engraving from: "Phytanthoza Iconographia", c1739, 

39.7 x 24.7 cm

Johann Weinmann (1683-1741), a German pharmacist and apothecary, was author and publisher of 'Phytanthoza Iconographia', one of the most important botanical works of the eighteenth century. 

Released in eight tranches between 1737 and 1745, it contains hand-coloured engravings depicting thousands of different plants. Many of the illustrations were created by the young artist George Ehret, who utilised a new printing process involving mezzotint, which enabled greater detail and shading than had been possible with the established techniques of line engraving. Ehret went on the become the pre-eminent botanical artist of the eighteenth century.