Artwork

The Botanical Magazine or Flower Garden Displayed: Plate 933, Protea mucronifolia. Dagger-Leaved Protea. [Protea odorata]

The Botanical Magazine or Flower Garden Displayed: Plate 933, Protea mucronifolia. Dagger-Leaved Protea. [Protea odorata] is a print by the Romanticist artist Francis Sansom. It is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Protea mucronifolia.

Accession no.: 2005.336
Credit line: Gift of The Cleveland Museum of Art Library

About this work

Overview

Protea mucronifolia. Dagger-Leaved Protea. [Protea odorata], Plate 933 from The Botanical Magazine or Flower Garden Displayed, is an 1806 print by Francis Sansom, currently in the collection of The Cleveland Museum of Art.

Subject & Meaning

The print depicts a single Protea plant, highlighting its distinctive dagger-like leaves and a prominent, rounded flower with layered white and red bracts and a fuzzy center, showcasing a South African species of botanical interest during the early 19th century.

Technique & Style

Rendered against a plain white background, the illustration emphasizes clarity and detail, characteristic of botanical art from the period, with meticulous attention to the plant's structural elements.

History & Provenance

Created in 1806 by Francis Sansom, the plate is part of a broader botanical publication aimed at documenting new species, now preserved in The Cleveland Museum of Art's collection.

Context

Reflecting the era's scientific and artistic pursuits, this work exemplifies the early 19th-century focus on botanical discovery and illustration, particularly of exotic species like those from South Africa.