The Floral Birthday Book - Victorian Treasure from 1876

This rare treasure was inscribed to Lizzie Davis from her loving sister Agnes, Christmas 1876. This rare survivor of almost 150 years features a coloured engraved frontispiece and pictorial coloured half-title both by W. Foster, in all 368 illus. engraved and printed by Edmund Evans. The Calendar shows 3 days to a page and for each day there is an illustration of a plant, with its meaning and an appropriate verse. Floriography or the language of flowers was at its height during the period and the range of qualities included is remarkable, those born on the 17th of February have the daffodil for chivalry, while those born on the 23rd of December have the trefoil for revenge. These pages are interleaved with blank lined leaves for the insertion of names. There are numerous names in elegant script. The names are written in multiple hands, suggesting that it may have functioned as both a memory aid and an autograph book for its owner – a place to collect the signatures of their beloved. The printer Edmund Evans became known for this sort of inclusion of vivid colour printing within an intricate page layout, which would have been something of a novelty at the time.  Bound in calf, gilt title to upper cover, small piece of leather is detached at the top of the spine and it is rubbed at the edges and corners. All edges gilt. Minor foxing some pages. The wide range of dates suggests it was in use for many years. It is a stunning piece of history.