Perennial mercury, Mercurialis perennis

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Perennial mercury, Mercurialis perennis

Perennial mercury, Mercurialis perennis. Handcoloured copperplate engraving after an illustration by Richard Duppa from his The Classes and Orders of the Linnaean System of Botany, Longman, Hurst, London, 1816

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Media ID 23170922

© Florilegius/Mary Evans

Classes Duppa Linnaean Mercury Orders Perennial Perennis System Mercurialis

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EDITORS COMMENTS
Perennial Mercury, Mercurialis perennis, is a herbaceous plant belonging to the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae). This exquisitely detailed hand-colored copperplate engraving, created by Richard Duppa in 1816, showcases the beauty and intricacy of this botanical specimen. The Linnaean System of Botany, from which this illustration is derived, was a groundbreaking taxonomic framework developed by Carl Linnaeus that revolutionized the way plants and animals were classified. Mercurialis perennis, commonly known as common mercury or false mercury, is native to Europe, North Africa, and western Asia. It is characterized by its low-growing, branching stems that produce small, greenish-yellow flowers in clusters. The plant's leaves are palmate, meaning they have lobes radiating from a central point. The engraving captures the delicate details of the plant's veined leaves, as well as its tiny, star-shaped flowers. The use of hand-colored copperplate engravings in botanical illustration was a popular method during the 18th and 19th centuries. This technique involved creating an engraving on a copper plate, which was then covered in a ground, a fine powdery substance, and painted with watercolors. The plate was then wiped clean, leaving only the colored areas, which were then transferred to paper through the printing process. The result was a highly detailed and accurate representation of the plant, as seen in this stunning illustration of Perennial Mercury.

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