Flora Huayaquilensis

1989

Special Collections QK271 T286 1989

[Madrid]: Editio facta ab Instituto ad Conservandam Naturam et ab Horto Regio Matritense

Juan José Tafalla Navascués was a Spanish pharmacist who joined the Ruiz and Pavón expedition to Peru and Chile in 1785. He spent much of his time documenting the different plants with wonderful paintings and written descriptions. His work, however, remained unpublished until in 1985, when Dr Eduardo Estrella discovered them in the archives of the Royal Botanical Gardens in Madrid. After 200 years, Flora Huayaquilensis finally appeared, depicting a collection of some 625 plants. On display is Cinchona or Quina, native to South America. Named by Linnaeus in 1742, after the Countess of Chinchón, the wife of a viceroy of Peru, this plant is renowned for its medicinal properties, in particular a source for quinine.