Robert Furber (1674 – 1756) planted the seed for lush, decorative botanical paintings and historically significant hand-painted engravings. Furber owned a famous London nursery, enabling him to scrupulously study and paint plants in exceptional detail. He is best known for his pictorial catalog, “The Twelve Months of the Year in Flowers,” the first plant and seed catalog ever published. One engraved plate was made for each month of the year, showing the corresponding seasonal flowers arranged in a vase. More than 400 species were represented in the exquisite series. Furber followed this endeavor with “The Twelve Months of Fruit,” which represented 364 varieties of fruit.

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