An Interactive Annotated World Bibliography of Printed and Digital Works in the History of Medicine and the Life Sciences from Circa 2000 BCE to 2022 by Fielding H. Garrison (1870-1935), Leslie T. Morton (1907-2004), and Jeremy M. Norman (1945- ) Traditionally Known as “Garrison-Morton”

15961 entries, 13944 authors and 1935 subjects. Updated: March 22, 2024

SOWERBY, James

2 entries
  • 13642

English botany; or, coloured figures of British plants, with their essential characters, synonyms, and places of growth. To which will be added, occasional remarks. 36 vols.

London: Printed for the author by J. Davis [etc], 17901814.

Issued in parts. Images by Sowerby; text by  Sir James Edward Smith. Only Sowerby is credited on the title page. Includes 2,592 hand-colored plates of British plants. 

"Buyers of this work today must exercise extreme caution. Because of its popularity, editions were published over many years, sometimes with images produced from worn out plates, parts from earlier editions and other bibliographic nightmares. The second edition of this work was merely a restrike of the first, and mixed editions were routinely produced. Sets of the final edition (usually in 13 volumes of quarto size, with 1,936 plates), designated the third edition, appeared as late as 1892, and were illustrated with crude lithographic (albeit hand-colored) copies of Sowerby's original engravings. There are also pirated editions" (Lawrence H. Conklin, "James Sowerby, his publications and collections," Minerological Record, Vol. 26, July-August, 1995).

Digital facsimile from the Hathi Trust at this link.



Subjects: BOTANY › Botanical Illustration, BOTANY › Catalogues of Plants, COUNTRIES, CONTINENTS AND REGIONS › England (United Kingdom)
  • 12951

A specimen of the botany of New Holland. By James Edward Smith. The figures by James Sowerby. Vol. 1 (All Published).

London: Printed by J. Davis: published by J. Sowerby, 17931795.

The first published book on the flora of Australia, issued by Sowerby in four parts between 1793 and 1795. It included 16 hand-colored plates reproducing paintings by Sowerby, mostly based on sketches by John White, author of A journal of a voyage to New South Wales (1790), and 54 pages of accompanying text by Sir James Edward Smith.

Digital facsimile from bibdigital.rjb.csic.es at this link.



Subjects: BOTANY › Botanical Illustration, BOTANY › Catalogues of Plants, COUNTRIES, CONTINENTS AND REGIONS › Australia