Spanish physician and naturalist Francisco Hernandez (1515-87) spent 7 years gathering information throughout the Valley of Mexico. The result, the Natural History of New Spain, consisted of 6 folio volumes containing descriptions of over 3000 plants previously unknown in Europe (along with descriptions of a much smaller number of animals and minerals) and 10 folio volumes of paintings. Hernandez died before he could publish his work, and the materials were destroyed by fire in 1671. This volume presents the most extensive selection of his works yet published in English.