Cesalpino, Andrea. De plantis libri XVI. Florence,... Lot 22

Cesalpino, Andrea. De plantis libri XVI. Florence, Marescotti, 1583. Bound with: Cesalpino, Andrea. De metallicis libri tres. Rome, Zannetti, 1596. In 4° (220 x 148 mm). First work: [40], 621, [11] pages. Typographic mark on title page and at end of volume; second work: [16], 222, [2] pages. Coat of arms of Clement VIII on title page (sporadic flourishing, on paper A3 of second work lack of upper corner due to paper defect with loss of text). Coeval vellum binding with traces of two endpapers, manuscript note to front plate. Antique ownership note. Interesting miscellany combining two very rare first editions of Cesalpino in copy with numerous handwritten annotations. In the first work the author attempted to go beyond a description of plants based, up to that time, on their use and properties by introducing a careful examination of their intrinsic characteristics. The second work, on the other hand, represents a continuation of Mercati's Metallotheca Vaticana for the part relating to gems and marbles. It contains numerous mentions of the origin of fossils, heat and oxygen in certain chemical combinations, and the laws of crystallization.