Sparganophorus and Athanasia, Pl. 670 — Encyclopédie Méthodique

Two members of the Asteraceae — Sparganophorus and Athanasia — drawn by Henri Joseph Redouté, whose precise eye captures the distinctive composite flower heads of each genus.

After Henri Joseph Redouté; engraved by Robert Bénard. Botanique, Plate 670, from the Encyclopédie Méthodique. Published in Paris, c. 1798.

The Encyclopédie Méthodique expanded upon Diderot and d'Alembert's original Encyclopédie, reorganising knowledge into subject-specific dictionaries with thousands of newly commissioned plates. Henri Joseph Redouté contributed numerous botanical drawings to the project, bringing the observational acuity that distinguished the wider Redouté family of natural-history artists.

Copperplate engraving on laid paper, approximately 29.7 × 21.6 cm. Very Good.