Incunable "Mainz" Herbal - 1485 "Gart der Gesundheit" -Schönsperger - Mandrake / Elephant with contemporary hand colouring

“Gart Der Gesundheit” – Incunable with Elephants, Cannabis, and Male & Female Mandrakes In contemporary colour An Incomplete copy of one of the earliest illustrated printed Herbals – Augsburg 1485 This is the second edition of the Gart der Gesundheit, and the first printed by Johann Schönsperger. Schönsperger likely pirated Schöffer's first edition of the book, which had come out a few months before and had been printed in Mainz. Later editions of the Gart der Gesundheit would use smaller size woodcuts. -Printed in Augsburg by Johann Schönsperger - 1485 -297 of 370 leaves only - with c335 contemporary-coloured woodcuts. -Incomplete: contains pages 25-26, 29-51, 53-102 (86 double-page numbered), 104-110, 112, 115-118, 120-121, 123-132 (124 double-page numbered), 134-140, 142-143, 145-208, 210-319, 322-333 only. -Poor condition: Wear to pages and some tears. Old water damage and mildew to many margins and pages. Some pages loose. -Modern binding to style with wooden boards and repurposed leather spine. Of note, the book includes male and female mandrakes coloured by a contemporary hand. The woodcuts are amongst the earliest images of mandrakes in printed form. Mandrakes - plants with roots resembling human forms - were known to have special powers from ancient times. Some authors described the root as an aphrodisiac and a cure for sterility, while others recommended it to be given before surgery. Although the "Gart der Gesundheit" is principally a herbal, animals with medical uses are also described in the book. These include deer, which were valued for their musk, and foxes, whose tongues were said to cure mouth ulcers! The book contains one of the earliest printed images of an elephant, although it was likely copied from previous European depictions, rather than drawn from life. The text below the contemporary coloured woodcut of the elephant describes “Spodium”, which was a medicine unfortunately made from ground elephant tusks that was said to be useful for nosebleeds, as well as other ailments. Despite the condition, this is an important and rare early Herbal with contemporary coloured woodcuts of Mandrakes and an elephant.