Flora Mirabilis: How Plants Have Shaped World Knowledge, Health, Wealth, and Beauty

This lavishly illustrated book provides an introduction to the uses of plants by people throughout the ages, as well as insight into the efforts of many people to study, understand, and categorize plants.The book has six chapters, with each chapter covering a particular period in history. The first chapter covers the single longest period of time, from prehistory to 1450 A.D. The five remaining chapters cover the period from 1450 A.D. to the present. The book explores the efforts, both theoretical and practical, of various people to study, understand, and categorize useful plants around the world at different times in history.Each of the six chapters has a botanical time-line that summarizes knowledge about plants by region of the world ("Africa & Middle East"; "Asia & Oceania"; "Europe"; "The Americas") under six separate categories ("Knowledge & Science"; "Power & Wealth"; "Health & Medicine"; "Sustenance & Flavor"; "Clothing & Shelter"; and "Beauty & Symbolism"). A total of 27 major plants are discussed in separate, one-page synopses that note the origins, folklore, and uses of each plant. Numerous other useful plants are also mentioned and referred to in other parts of the book.The book provides a multifaceted look at plants and their use by people throughout history. It is fairly readable and very informative. You do not have to be knowledgeable about plants to read and understand it.

This book takes you on the daring and dangerous journeys and explorations of the early part of the 16th-19th centuries(and before) as Expanding Human needs and Modern Medicine moved from the Dark ages into Medieval and then Modern man and away from herbalists and apothecaries. However, it shows, that in fact, Life expectancy, our creature comforts, diet as well as modern medicine are much derived from these roots, stems, barks, leaves, flowers and other plant parts. Medicine and chemistry looked for molecular compounds that would help treat disease, clothe, feed, and create aesthetic improvements. Often native peoples folklore helped direct these explorers to the specimens to collect. The book is beautiful, with great illustrations and is a good read.  Zen of Watering Your Garden]]Zen of Watering Your Garden Is a book I put together. As you look at the flowers in the garden think about the nearly endless compounds and uses in all the beauty of Mother Nature. Matt Cohen

This book has some gorgeous vintage botanical illustrations in it. I give it that. But for my taste it has too many of them. I was hoping for more written information and less pictoral illustration. Not to say that there is not some very useful/interesting information, there is, there just isn't enough of it for my taste.The organization of this book is a bit disconcerting. It starts out with a generalized historical account, but the individual pages for specific plants contributions to history are interspersed with the general history. This means that you will be in the middle of a sentence about one subject matter on one page and have a completely different text with no relation to what you previously were reading about on the next page. So in order actually read the book you have to keep flipping back and forth between pages so you can finish one subject but then backtrack to read the other. I HATE this interspersed format. It's not conducive to an informative reading experience.

This beautiful, compact volume is just as much an exhibition of botanical illustration as it is a narrative of the history between humans and plants. Readers interested in plants as a hobby will find this book a good introduction to many topics. I particularly love the vignettes on specific plants that have shaped history. However, serious plant scholars may not find this book useful beyond the wonderful illustrations. The many high-resolution prints of rare drawings make it worth the price on their own.Aside from its contents, the book is a nice size for reading while relaxing. It is comfortable to hold in your lap while lounging (an important trait for me, as I love to lay about and read.)

This book is so wonderfully different from anything that I've seen before as it mixes botany, botanical art, history, exploration, and has special pages highlighting numerous "very important" plants in human history. The reproduction of so much botanical artwork makes it a must-have alone!After seeing/reading it myself, I bought a number of extra copies to given to friends of mine interested in botany and also art. I've lots of books but this is unique in its coverage of (for me) a history of botany, especially in this manner.

Product came moldy. Cover was loose and pages were moldy

If one was religious, this book could be The Bible for the botanical artist, horticulturalist and historian.Ilastrated with rare exquisite prints, and reproduced to typically high quality National Geographic standards in a format that irresistibly invites one in.Flora Mirabilis takes you through a journey around the world and back in time, hand in hand with Alexander the Great to Joseph Paxton, this book has not left my side as deap ecology reveals itself within the pages and in my heart.

This is a real treasure! I have read one or two other books that treat the same subject, and this is the best one by far.It is like three books in one: the narrative well written and detailed; the history line convenient especially for failing memories like mine and the short histories of some of the main foods in the world.The book is elegant, well designed and lavishly illustrated.

A friend gave his book to me to read. Once I saw it, first thing I did was to place order with Amazon.inLove to see many more books like these.

Beautiful book, a pleasure to read

Must have book for all pant lovers