The finest Italian work on fruits, remarkable for colouring which is at once delicate and intense. The plates appeared in 41 parts, and Domenico del Pino, Antonio Serantoni and Isabella Bozzolini were among as many as twenty artists responsible for the designs. An almost equal number of engravers were involved, Giuseppe Pera, Giuseppe Carocci, Tommaso Nasi and Francesco Corsi being well represented. A lawyer and a civil servant as well as a botanist, Gallesio conducted experiments in his fruit garden in Savona later quoted by Charles Darwin to illustrate the development of varieties. Although he died before completion of this work, he had left pre-eminent contributions to the study of Italian fruit.

Six hand-coloured plates of Grapes, printed in colour and finished by hand. Framed and glazed, overall size: 42.5 by 57.5cm by 2cm.

Dunthorne 118: 'a very fine work'; Great Flower Books pp. 92-95; Oak Spring Pomona 52; Nissen BBI 683. (3)