The Wilding or Crab Tree (Malus sylvestris) – Original Hand-Colored Engraving by Elisabeth Blackwell

This refined botanical engraving depicts The Wilding or Crab Tree, presenting a fruit-bearing branch with balanced structure and natural clarity, rendered with an emphasis on legibility and compositional restraint.

The composition is articulated through a slender central stem, from which rounded leaves and developing fruits emerge with measured spacing. Elisabeth Blackwell’s rendering allows each element—foliage, blossom, and fruit—to be read distinctly, while maintaining a harmonious visual flow grounded in direct observation.

Created in the early eighteenth century, this plate belongs to A Curious Herbal, a foundational medical and botanical reference distinguished by the unity of its production, in which drawing, copper engraving, and hand-colouring were executed by the same hand.

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Visual and Aesthetic Analysis

The vertical composition is gently punctuated by lateral branches, creating a calm rhythm that guides the eye upward. The rounded forms of the fruits introduce points of visual weight, counterbalancing the finer articulation of leaves and stem.

Subtle tonal transitions model the apples with restrained depth, while the foliage is rendered in layered greens that enhance volume without excess contrast. The controlled palette reinforces the engraving’s documentary intent while preserving a composed and harmonious presence.

About the Subject

The wilding or crab tree (Malus sylvestris) was a familiar presence in early European herbals, documented both for its fruit and for its broader medicinal and symbolic associations. Unlike cultivated apple varieties, the crab apple was valued for its hardy nature and distinctive fruit, which featured in remedies, preserves, and household preparations. Accurate depiction of flowering and fruiting stages was therefore essential for practical identification, making such plates particularly important in medical reference works. Its inclusion in A Curious Herbal reflects the need to record fruit-bearing trees whose usefulness depended on recognizing specific stages of growth and maturation.

Condition Report

The engraving is in exceptionally fine antique condition, printed on original handmade laid paper typical of early 18th-century botanical publications. A period watermark is visible on the sheet, consistent with contemporary papermaking practices. The surface remains fresh and stable, with no notable defects. The original hand-colouring is well preserved, and the impression is crisp and legible throughout. These qualities correspond to a “like brand new” state of preservation and confirm the authenticity of the print as an original production from A Curious Herbal. The engraved credit “Eliz. Blackwell delin. sculp. et pinx.” is present and fully legible, attesting that the drawing, engraving, and hand-colouring were executed by Elisabeth Blackwell herself.

Details

• Artist: Elisabeth Blackwell
• Work / Publication: A Curious Herbal
• Period: 1737–1739
• Technique: Original copper engraving, drawn, engraved, and hand-colored by Elisabeth Blackwell
• Paper: Original handmade laid paper
• Watermark: Period watermark visible
• Sheet size: approx. 37 × 22 cm

For further context on Elisabeth Blackwell and the singular unity of authorship behind A Curious Herbal, see our editorial feature:

Elisabeth Blackwell – A Curious Herbal