Complete first edition of a richly illustrated botanical work depicting nearly all species of orchids and their hybrids, by the French botanist and mycologist Julien Noël Costantin (1857-1936). The work was published in 10 instalments of 3 coloured plates each, plus a supplement (pages 93-106), which is often lacking. The text treats the different variations of orchids, the use of orchids (in perfume for example), their origins and the different climates in which they grow, and how to cultivate them. The coloured plates depict numerous variations of orchids.
Textleaves browned, some slightly creased, plates in very good condition. Binding somewhat rubbed along the extremities. Overall a good copy. Cf. Cat. Lindley Libr., p. 97.