1847 The Complete Herbal [etc.] by Nicholas Culpeper

New edition. A thorough 19th century edition of Culpeper’s celebrated herbal, which was originally published in 1652 under the title The English Physitian. This edition expands upon the ‘signatures’ of the herbs - an occult practice in which a plant’s physical appearance was believed to correlate to the human organ it could benefit. Many of these signatures remain reflected in modern plant names, such as Lungwort, traditionally used to tackle respiratory problems as physicians believed the leaves resembled infected lung tissue. 19 of 20 hand-coloured plates depicting medicinal herbs alongside extensive medical recipes.

Spine rebacked, boards worn with leather chipped at corners, front hinge cracked (holding well), lacks plate 1 with remaining 19 intact, prelims foxed, occasional handling marks, ink inscription to forward blanks. Text block firm, good overall. Contemporary leather boards with later spine and title label, marbled endpapers. Pp. v, 398, [4]. 27 x 21.5 cm.