John Ellis (Three red corals) London 1786. $275.00

Plate 12

John Ellis (Irish 1710-1776) was a naturalist who was appointed an English government agent for West Florida and the Island of Dominica. He was a prolific writer including works on coffee, tea, breadfruit, and corals, which encouraged the growth and popularity of the tea and coffee trade. His work on tea was published in 1772, when the interest in tea drinking focused on its medicinal properties. The tea-tree was introduced to England by John Ellis in about 1768. Ellis was one of the earliest marine zoologists. His descriptions of zoophytes and meticulously-drawn engravings were outstanding, and he was made a fellow of the Royal Society in 1754, awarded its Copely medal in 1767.

Ellis’s great work, The Natural History of many Uncommon & Curious Zoophytes was published posthumously in 1786. The work had been left in the possession of Daniel Solander, the Swedish scientist who together with Ellis discovered that sponges are animals. Ellis's daughter, Martha, retrieved the manuscript and ensured its publication in 1786.

Copperplate engraving hand colored
9 x 11/5 inches sheet.
Very good condition.