Kirjahaku

A world history of citrus, from the art of classical antiquity to the science of the modern era. Mandarin, citron, pomelo, bergamot, kumquat… Citrus traces the history of today’s global superfood from its cultivation in the ancient world from just a handful of original ‘wild’ species, via Arab trade routes, the noble collectors of medieval Europe, imperial conquerors on the high seas, and merchants risking ruin for the highest-value fruit crop ever known. The story of citrus permeates human history, as recorded in the literature and art of civilisations from antiquity to the present day. When Alexander the Great’s army swept over the Persian Empire, they found the citron: the first citrus fruit known in the West. During the Napoleonic wars, British ships carried lemons and limes to protect their sailors against scurvy: the ‘Limeys’ ruled the waves. As the citrus trade grew in importance in the nineteenth century, the Sicilian Mafia was established among citrus farmers, protecting their crops and their livelihoods. From the art of the Renaissance to modern advertising and graphic design, this richly illustrated, invigorating cultural history reveals how these extraordinary, life-giving fruits have flavoured, scented, healed and coloured our world.

One of Gardens Illustrated's Best Books of 2020Acclaimed author David Mabberley provides a ground-breaking analysis of early European understanding of Australia’s lora. Combining science, horticulture, art and economics, this lavishly illustrated book – with many never before-published images – reveals the motives and complex networks that led to the international spread of knowledge and cultivation of hundreds of Australian plants in Europe in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.Based on the superb Peter Crossing Collection, Botanical Revelation documents a revolutionary phase in the understanding of Australia’s flora and science more generally.Features:David Mabberley is one of the world’s foremost botanical scholarsof early colonial AustraliaThe detailed story of early European encounters with Australianplants is told here for the first timeA beautifully designed and produced book packed with stunningillustrations, many never before publishedUses a comprehensive private library - the Peter Crossing Collection-devoted to the early encountering, documenting and illustratingof Australian plants by Europeans before Darwin came here in1836 - to tell a fascinating story

Although we may often think of the apple as quintessentially English, its origins lie in China. The apple (the Malus genus) arose in the Tertiary period (5.3 – 1.8 million years ago) in southern China and spread through a continuous corridor of temperate forest as far as western Europe. This book details the natural and cultural history of the apple, using DNA evidence, from its origins in China, along the Silk Road to Europe and onto the Americas and Australia.