Basilius Besler (1561-1629)
This site will be of interest to all botanical artists and all those who enjoy botanical art and natural history.
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- Biography of Basilius Besler (1561-1629)
- Images from the Hortus Eystettensis (The Garden of Eichstatt)
- BOOKS: Hortus Eystettensis
- Visit the Garden at Eichstatt
- Making A Mark reviews......
- Images of art by Basilius Besler
- Resources for Botanical Art Lovers
- Resources for Botanical Artists
- Comments and Feedback
Biography of Basilius Besler (1561-1629)
- Basilius Besler - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Basilius Besler (1561 - 1629), was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental Hortus Eystettensis. He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which was the only important European botanical garden outside Italy.
- Basilius Besler Biography
- Basilius Besler (1591-1629) was a pharmacist in Nuremberg who was in charge of the bishop's gardens in Eichstätt. He also set up his own botanical gardens and developed a comprehensive collection of natural history specimens and was soon known as a botanist and collector of natural history specimens. He described his then famous natural history showcase in two books. In 1609 Besler wrote a description of the garden he created for the bishop of Eichstätt. The precious work he then produced, his famous plant atlas Hortus Eystettensis, was published in 1613 by Besler and Ludwig Jungermann and printed in large format, with the bishop financing it. The work contains 1086 illustrations of plants from 367 copperplate engravings, most of which were depicted in their natural size.
Flos solismaior (1616) by Basilus Besler
Images from the Hortus Eystettensis (The Garden of Eichstatt)
The Hortus Eystettensis changed botanical art overnight. The plates were of garden flowers, herbs and vegetables, exotic plants such as castor-oil and arum lilies. These were depicted near life-size, producing rich detail. The layout was artistically pleasing and quite modern in concept, with the hand-colouring adding greatly to the final effect.
The work was first published in 1613 and consisted of 367 copper engravings, with an average of three plants per page, so that a total of 1084 species were depicted. The first edition printed 300 copies, which took four years to sell.
- Hortus Eystettensis
- In 1611, the Prince Bishop of Eichstätt in Germany was already terminally ill when he determined to record for posterity the spectacular garden he'd created at his palace in Bavaria with plants from around the world. Hundreds of his favourite flowers where carefully drawn and engraved as they bloomed through the four seasons. Published in 1613, the finished catalogue was the largest and most magnificent florilegium ever made. Sadly, the prince bishop never lived to see it: he died the year before.
The British Library has a copy of the Hortus Eystettensis and an extended article about the development of both garden, artwork and the printing of the book - Basilius Besler Gallery
- W. Graham Arader III: Paintings, rare books, prints, maps and atlases. - gallery of images from the 'HORTUS EYSTETTENSIS (
His 'HORTUS EYSTETTENSIS (The Garden of Eichstatt)' contains 374 plates and took 16 years to complete. The principal engraver was Wolfgang Kilian (1581-1662); as many as ten other artists and engravers may also have been employed. Over one thousand flowers were depicted, representing 667 species with exemplary fidelity to nature. The rhythmic patterns of roots, however, betray the decorative linear conventions of the era of Albrecht Durer and Lucas Cranach.
The 'HORTUS EYSTETTENSIS' was one of the first printed herbals to be illustrated. Such an undertaking was of inestimable value to doctors, pharmacists- and their patients. The 'HORTUS EYSTETTENSIS' also represented a significant effort to systematize botanical nomenclature, which would not be standardized until the publication of Linnaeus' system in 1753. - Botanical prints, Basilius Besler's Hortus Eystettensis, antique original botanical prints, Besler Botanical Prints
- Original Natural History prints of Basilius Besler
BOOKS: Hortus Eystettensis
books on Amazon
Besler's Book of Flowers and Plants: 73 Full-Color Plates from Hortus Eystettensis, 1613 (Pictorial Archive Series)
One of the great treasures of botanical literature, the Hortus Eystettensis vividly illustrated and identified the plants, flowers, and trees that thrived in the legendary German garden at Eichstätt. This book presents intricately detailed plates from that original masterpiece, showcasing the garden's lush variety of plants.
See also my book review below
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Hortus Eystettensis
Hortus Eystettensis was published in 1613 to document a garden created by the Prince-Bishop of Eichstatt which contained all the shrubs and flowering plants known at the time; 367 plates illustrate more than 1,000 species. It was printed from copper engravings in a very large format, and a few of the copies (no more than 25) were printed on special paper and individually hand-colored by teams of illuminators. One of these priceless volumes is owned by the British Library; and Barker, former deputy keeper there, set out to find the extant colored copies, compare them, and establish the full history of this monumental book. The text is accompanied by 80 full-page reproductions which, even in this oversize volume (12x15"), are only half the size of the originals, and comparative details from the different copies.
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Botanical Prints from the Hortus Eystettensis: Selections from the Most Beautiful Botanical Book in the World
These wonderful prints feature the extraordinary botanical drawings made in the 17th century. Each of the 25 color illustrations is suitable for framing.
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The Book of Plants: The Complete Plates (Taschen 25th Anniversary Series)
TASCHEN's 25th anniversary - Special edition! New design, new low price! The most famous botanical record ever committed to paper: Basilius Besler's complete Book of Plants of 1613 A magnificent pictorial document of the flowers grown in the greatest German garden of its time, the Book of Plants is in a class of its own when it comes to the variety and range of flowers engraved. Working under Basilius Besler, a team of at least ten engravers worked on this massive project, translating in situ and specimen drawings faithfully to copper plates. Nearly four hundred years old, the book has survived though the gardens did not; they were destroyed by invading Swedish troops in 1634. However, in 1998 a reconstruction of the original garden opened to the public in Eichstatt. This facsimile's reproductions - structured by seasons - are taken from a hand-painted edition, one of only a few still extant. In auction, the asking price for a first edition copy is half a million dollars. You can now enjoy its unique qualities for somewhat less.
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Visit the Garden at Eichstatt
Burgstraße 19
85072 Eichstätt
Telephone (0 84 21) 47 30
fax (0 84 21) 81 94
Opening hours
mid-April until mid-October:9 am-6 pm
Closed Mondays, closed from mid-October until mid-April
- Bavarian Palace Department | Gardens | Eichstatt Bastion Garden
- Short description of the Eichstatt Bastion Garden including information for tourists like opening hours etc
- Bavarian Palace Department | Palaces | Willibaldsburg Castle
- Short description of Willibaldsburg Castle at Eichstatt including information for tourists like opening hours, admission charges etc
- Willibald Castle and Bastion Garden, Eichstatt, D-Bavaria, Germany
- The castle complex on the Willibaldsberg was begun in 1355 and extended in the second half of the 16th century under Martin von Schaumberg. It was transformed into an impressive residence by Elias Holl during the reign of Prince-Bishop Johann Conrad von Gemmingen (1595-1612) - at this stage of the building's history the towers were crowned by onion domes.
Gemmingen also laid out the renowned botanical garden "Hortus Eystettensis". Based on the copperplate engravings illustrating the plant collection which were created in 1613 by Basilius Besler, the Bastion Garden opened in 1998 reproduces the plant world of the original botanical garden.
Making A Mark reviews......
- Making a Mark: Book Review: Besler's Book of Flowers and Plants
- In my opinion, this is the sort of book which will appeal to a real fan of the history of botanical art. It's certainly very interesting from the point of view of studying classical portrayals of plants and flowers. I also found it really interesting to see the difference between the woodcuts seen in the book reviewed yesterday and how the nature of the illustrations changed as they started to use (1) copper engraving and (2) colour.
Caltha palustrisflore by Basilius Besler
Images of art by Basilius Besler
- Basilius Besler Paintings Drawings Prints
- Various images
- Arader Galleries - Basilius Besler Gallery
- W. Graham Arader III: Paintings, rare books, prints, maps and atlases.
- Joel Oppenheimer - Basilius Besler-"Hortus Eystettensis" Deluxe Edition
- Basilius Besler¹s magnificent engravings are the first large-folio natural history botanicals. His work, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden of Eichstätt), is man¹s earliest documentation of a specific garden and is the oldest of all of the great botanicals.
- Joel Oppenheimer - Basilius Besler-"Hortus Eystettensis" First Edition
- First edition
- Joel Oppenheimer - Basilius Besler-"Hortus Eystettensis" Second Edition
- Second edition
- Joel Oppenheimer - Basilius Besler-"Hortus Eystettensis" Jubilee Edition
- Jubilee Edition
- Antique Prints: Tulipa Lutea Lituris Aureis.
- From our selection of antique prints in London, this is Tulipa Lutea Lituris Aureis. by BESLER, Basilius
- Antique Prints: Tulipa Lutea Maculis Rubens.
- From our selection of antique prints in London, this is Tulipa Lutea Maculis Rubens. by BESLER, Basilius
- Antique Prints: Tulipa Miniata Pleno Flore.
- From our selection of antique prints in London, this is Tulipa Miniata Pleno Flore. by BESLER, Basilius
- Antique Prints: Tulipa Serotina Polyanthos
- From our selection of antique prints in London, this is Tulipa Serotina Polyanthos by BESLER, Basilius
- Basilius Besler 1561-1629 - Fine Art Prints series ref. BE1,2,10,11 from ARC Prints
- Basilius Besler 1561-1629 series ref. BE1,2,10,11, from the range of fine art prints published by ARC Prints.
Besler images - Giclee Poster Prints
Besler Aloe Fine Art Poster Print by Basilius Besler, 18x24
Amazon Price: $29.99 (as of 12/07/2009) 
Besler Peonie IV Fine Art Poster Print by Basilius Besler, 18x24
Amazon Price: $34.99 (as of 12/07/2009)
Besler Floral VI Art Poster Print by Basilius Besler, 21x24
Amazon Price: $99.99 (as of 12/07/2009)
Red Peppers Cuisine Art Poster Print by Basilius Besler, 20x25
Amazon Price: $42.99 (as of 12/07/2009)
Tulips Botanical Art Poster Print by Basilius Besler, 20x25
Amazon Price: (as of 12/07/2009)
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Making A Mark
Katherine Tyrrell's blogging portfolio about: - Making a mark creating drawings with pastels, pencils and pen and ink - Art projects - Notable Artists - Developing art careers - Art blogs and blogging about art - Reviews of art books and exhibitions - Inf
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- Treasures-By-Brenda Treasures-By-Brenda Mar 22, 2009 @ 6:36 am
- What a fantastic resource you have created here. Did you consider using any photos from Allposters?
Brenda
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- tandemonimom tandemonimom Mar 19, 2009 @ 12:33 am
- This is very cool! I had never heard of Besler and I always love learning something new! Very informative read! 5*
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- ottoblotto ottoblotto Mar 18, 2009 @ 9:47 pm
- Very nice art lens.
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