FOLKARD, Richard.

£1,750 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

Plant Lore, Legends, and Lyrics. First edition of the author's magnum opus, a "most useful compendium" of every cultural myth or legend on plants that he could source (The Folk-Lore Journal, p. 94). The book is a monumental reference work key to plant lore divided into two sections, the first a thematic overview, the second an alphabetical listing of 600 plants with their relevant lore.Little is known about Folkard himself, except that he was a letterpress printer and worked prior to this on a botanical journal whose culmination prompted this collection. Despite the Sampson Low imprint Folkard notes in the preface that he printed the work himself, taking full credit for the consequent misspellings and textual errors. The illustrations include reproductions from key herbals such as Parkinson's Paradisi (1656) and Gerarde's Herbal (1633). The plants and legends are of a global scope not seen before, including the flor de Pesadilla from Buenos Aires, and bitobohs, tree spirits, from South Sudan.

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.