drawing

This drawing is almost certainly a page from a manuscript herbal. We know that it was once part of a bound volume because three of the four edges of this sheet have been gilded. There are six companion pages in the V&A collection.

The drawing is fairly crude and oversimplified. You can see from the small drooping central leaf that the artist lacked the skill to represent foreshortening. Nevertheless, the detail of the plant's structure is very accurate. The textile designer James Mitten once owned this drawing. He probably used it as source material when designing floral and foliage patterns.