ID 470176
Lot 101 | Cristoval Acosta (1512-1580) and Garcia da Orta (c 1500-1568...
Estimate value
£ 6 000 – 9 000
Tractado de las drogas, y medicinas de las Indias Orientales. 1578
ACOSTA, Cristoval (1512-1580) and Garcia da ORTA (c. 1500-1568). Tractado de las drogas, y medicinas de las Indias Orientales, con sus plantas debuxadas al bivo. Burgos: Martin de Victoria, 1578.
First edition of this highly influential work by the Portuguese physician and naturalist Cristoval Acosta. It is an extended version of Garcia da Orta's important record of Indian plants and tropical medicine, first published at Goa in 1563. Acosta and Orta met in Goa where they both studied the indigenous flora and medicine. Acosta's enlargement 'clearly surpasses the earlier work in its systematic, first-hand observations of both East and West Indian plants and its illustrations after Acosta's own accurate drawings' (Norman 1). Among the Asian plants illustrated are cinnamon, mango, tamarind, pepper, nutmeg, ginger, cardomom, pineapple, sugar cane and the rubber tree. Alden-Landis 587/19; Blunt-Rahael pp.145-48; Garrison-Morton 1819; Hunt 130; NLM/Durling 1064; Pritzel 13; Stafleu-Cowan 23.
Octavo (186 x 132mm). Woodcut title border incorporating arms of Burgos, woodcut portrait of Acosta, and 41 full-page woodcut illustrations of New World plants, 2 full-page woodcuts of elephants, 3 smaller illustrations of plants, historiated woodcut initials (short marginal tears to T1 and Z7, title cut close at foot, variable spotting, browning and staining throughout). 18th-century half sheep over marbled paper-covered boards (extremities rubbed, joints cracking). Provenance: Fernando de Henao Monsaraz (near contemporary ownership inscription on title) – evidence of stamp removed from front pastedown.
Address of auction |
CHRISTIE'S 8 King Street, St. James's SW1Y 6QT London United Kingdom | |
---|---|---|
Preview |
| |
Phone | +44 (0)20 7839 9060 | |
Buyer Premium | see on Website | |
Conditions of purchase | Conditions of purchase |
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.