In the middle of the 19th C, when Japan was still closed to travelers from occidental countries, Japanese gardeners were anxious to export their hybridized irises. In order to display the iris to prospective buyers, the nurseries would commission artists to paint exact images of each species. These images were numbered and bound in a book which would be sent to Europe or the United States and used to create interest in the specialized plants and from which buyers ordered by number from the books. The image here is a leaf taken from one such book. Today these watercolors are scarce.

15 x 10 inches
24 x 19 inches frame

Shipping available at buyers expense. Glass will be removed from any glass framed art.

very good

15 x 10 in