Fever Nut Plant "Ban Caretti": A 17th Century Engraving by Hendrik van Rheede

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This is a 17th century engraving of a fever or bonduc nut plant entitled "Ban Caretti" by Hendrik van Rheede tot Drakenstein, plate 20 from his 'Hortus Indicus Malabaricus' (Garden of Malabar), published in Amsterdam in 1686 by Johann van Someren. The engraving depicts the Malabar Ban Caretti plant, which is native to South Asia, originally in the rainy tropical regions of the Malabar Coast of India and Sri Lanka, but it is now grown in backyard gardens around the world. The publication features illustrations of exotic plants and fruits labelled with script in Latin, Malay, Arabic, and Sanskrit. Hortus Indicus Malabaricus is believed to be the earliest comprehensive published work on the flora of Asia and the tropics. The 17th century treatise featured important illustrations of 740 plants of the region, including Indian medicinal plants.

Creator: Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein (1636 - 1691, Dutch)

Creation Year: 1686

Dimensions: Height: 15 in (38.1 cm)
Width: 18.63 in (47.33 cm)

Medium: Engraving

Condition: See description below.

Reference #: 4760

This is a 17th century engraving of a fever or bonduc nut plant entitled "Ban Caretti" by Hendrik van Rheede tot Drakenstein, plate 20 from his 'Hortus Indicus Malabaricus' (Garden of Malabar), published in Amsterdam in 1686 by Johann van Someren. The engraving depicts the Malabar Ban Caretti plant, which is native to South Asia, originally in the rainy tropical regions of the Malabar Coast of India and Sri Lanka, but it is now grown in backyard gardens around the world. The publication features illustrations of exotic plants and fruits labelled with script in Latin, Malay, Arabic, and Sanskrit. Hortus Indicus Malabaricus is believed to be the earliest comprehensive published work on the flora of Asia and the tropics. The 17th century treatise featured important illustrations of 740 plants of the region, including Indian medicinal plants.

Creator: Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein (1636 - 1691, Dutch)

Creation Year: 1686

Dimensions: Height: 15 in (38.1 cm)
Width: 18.63 in (47.33 cm)

Medium: Engraving

Condition: See description below.

Reference #: 4760

The engraving is printed on 17th century laid, chain-linked paper. The sheet measures 15" high by 18.63" wide. There is a central fold, as issued. There are a small number of tiny spots and faint discoloration at the outer edge of the upper and right margins. The print is otherwise in excellent condition. The original Latin descriptive text page is included.

Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein (1636-1691) was a botanist, naturalist, and a colonial administrator of the Dutch East India Company. He also served as the governor of Dutch Malabar between 1669 and 1676. The Malabar coast, the Western Ghats district, a region principally covering the areas which are presently in the Indian states of Kerala, Karnataka and Goa.