Linden, Jean Jules

Jean Jules Linden (1817-1898)
Lindenia - Iconographie des Orchidees
Ghent/Bruxelles 1855-1903

One of the rarest iconographies published on Orchids. Towards the end of the 19th century Belgium became one of the most important trading centers for tropical and subtropical orchids. After much travelling, especially to South America, Jean Linden established himself as a nurseryman at ghent but eventually returned to Brussels, where he founded with his son Lucienthe establishment known as 'Horticulture Internationale.' They imported more than 1100 different species into Belgium. "In this nursery, which became a model for the profession, Linden's knowledge of plants and localities in which they grew naturally proved invaluable" (Reinikka p.206). The plates were lithographed by G. Severeyns and P. de Pannemaeker, the best Belgian lithographers of the period. Most of the plates were drawn by A. Goosens, who later collaborated with A.C. Cogniaux on an equally large project, the 'Dictionnaire iconographique des orchidees'.