First edition of the English translation of a work on cryptogams by the German botanist and physician Kurt Sprengel (1766-1833). It mostly deals with ferns, mosses and lichen, and occasionally treats some fungi. The hand-coloured plates show a total of 106 figures, mostly plant details. "Sprengel strongly promoted the microscopic examination of plants and studied their structure, developing his own theory of plant-cell formation. Although soon superseded, his ideas about the nature of cells and fibers provided an essential stimulus for further investigations by notable botanists, such as Heirich F. Link, Johann J. Bernhardi, and Ludorf C. Treviranus" (DSB).
A few small spots and a marginal water stain on a few of the last plates. Binding rubbed along the extremities, hinge restored. Overall in good condition. DSB XII, p. 591-592; Stafleu & Cowan 12675; cf. Volbracht 2034 .