Giovanni Battista Ferrari (1584-1655) was born in Siena, became a Jesuit and taught Hebrew in a seminary in Rome for much of his life. His assion for gardening was first seen in the ‘De Florum’ published in 1633. The ‘Hesperides sive de Malorum’ published in 1646 is the first book entirely devoted to citrus fruit. Many of the plates are the work of the artist and engraver Cornelis Bloemart (1603-92), apprenticed to Crispin de Passe. The varietal names are written in elaborate ribbons. De Belder (1987) 124, Hunt (1958) 243; Nissen BBI (1966) 621; ‘Oak Spring Pomona’ (1990) pp.177-80.