The botanical book, “Hesperides sive de Malorum Aureorum cultura et usu. Libri Quatuo” was published in Rome in 1646 by Giovanni Battista Ferrari. It is the first scholarly work to describe lemon, lime, and orange varieties and contains engravings designed by prominent artists of the day. John has incorporated many of these beautiful, hand-colored illustrations into a new edition of trays. Elements of these engravings have also been used on plates and mugs in collaboration with Astier de Villatte such as our Blue Ribbon Mug.