'Flora Fluminensis' de frei José Mariano da Conceicao Vellozo - Documentos. 2018. (Serie Universidade, vol. 9, UFF). illus. XXXVI, 397 p. Hardcover. - In Portuguese.

This expanded edition contains documents relating to the publication of the gigantic ‘Flora Fluminensis’, authored by Franciscan priest José Mariano da Conceição Vellozo (1742-1811), one of the leading naturalists in Portuguese America. The ‘Flora Fluminensis’ presented descriptions and pictures of 1,640 Brazilian plants and many ecological indications and indigenous names. Completed in 1790, just 12 years after Lineu's death, it represented a remarkable endeavour for the time, but was only published posthumously in 1825.

The volume contains documents on mineralogy, botany and zoology and papers related to the publication of other floras: the brasiliensis, started by the Bavarian naturalist Martius, and the paraensis. Among the documents relating to the publication, there are also letters from Dom Rodrigo de Souza Coutinho dealing with Friar Mariano's studies on saltpetre, quinine and brandy, consignments of books and plates from Lisbon, and prints of the work ‘O fazendeiro do Brasil’, covering the period from 1797 to 1825. The edition includes the chapters ‘Travelling naturalists’; ‘Friar scientists’ and a ‘Miscellany’ made up of the project for the Royal Academy of Rio de Janeiro and documents from the Arco do Cego Printing Office.