Nicolaus Joseph von Jacquin has received Linnaeus’s letter of 18 October 1770{L4417} which was very welcome.
With this letter, Jacquin sends specimens of a Salvia, an Iris and a Sempervivum with which he is not satisfied, but he can not do more by himself and needs help.
A long and detailed description is given of a variety of Trifolium and on Allium Pannonicum.
Jacquin thanks Linnaeus for seeds of Browallia. He will return to the matter of Philip Miller’s and Charles Plumier’s treatment of Tillandsiaand Karatas in a later letter, since he has to look for the cited work (Jacquin refers to The Gardeners dictionary, 8th edition) in the Imperial library.
Jacquin will start to publish the Flora Austriaca with 25 plates. All will be coloured, and the plates will have Linnaeus’s trivial names as the first synonym. – The first fascicle is not likely to appear until next fall, since the colouring takes so much time (Jacquin refers to Florae Austriacae, sive plantarum selectarum).
Next week, the first fascicle of his presentation of the rare plants in the Vienna garden will appear (Jacquin refers to Hortus botanicus Vindobonensis). Jacquin repeats some basic facts: 162 copies produced; the copper plates have been recycled. It will cost three gold ducats. There is a de luxe edition of 12 copies meant for royal libraries, so if the Swedish king, Adolf Fredrik wants one of those it should be ordered at once.
Jacquin is sorry that Linnaeus is in poor health. He hopes Linnaeus will live on for many years more, which would make Jacquin happy and favour botany immensely.
[2004-07-11]