BOTANY: A Study of Pure Curiosity is a translation of the letters which Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) wrote during his lifetime to his friends, superbly illustrated by P.J.Redoute.
Rousseau was a highly influential philosopher in his day but, during the last years of his life, he spent a great deal of his time on the study of botany, a subject which has fascinated and atracted him troughout his life. He made a detailed study of every plant on the island of Saint Pierre on Lake Bienne in Switzweland, and, when he came to England, as a guest of Richard Davenport at Wooton Hall, he studied the flora of the surrounding countryside in great detail. On his return to Paris, Rousseau wrote his famous "Lettres Elementaires sur la Botanique", subsequently translated into many languages.
In 1805, after his death, these letters were published again, but this time the famous French botanical artist, J.P.Redouté was commissioned to illustrate the volume. it is this same volume, complete with Redouté's exquisitely delicate illustrations of many species of garden flowers and plants, which is here reproduced.
The letters have been translated by Kate Ottevanger, an authority on 18th century French literature, and there is an introduction by Roy McMullen, which includes an essay on Rousseau's theories about nature , and a description of Redouté's work and printing techniques.