Johann Wilhelm Weinmann Art

Johann Wilhelm Weinmann (1683 – 1741) was a botanist and an apothecary. Between 1737 and 1745, he created the florilegium Phytanthoza iconographia. This was a very ambitious project and it resulted in 8 folio volumes having not less than a thousand hand-colored engravings of several thousand plants. The publication is not only the first botanical work to contain mezzotints printed in color, but is also one of the largest florilegia ever produced. Weinmann’s work must have inspired similar works, such as the Japanese medicinal work by Iwasaki Tsunemasa and Yokusai Iinuma. What is known of Weinmann’s early life is that in 1710, he found work as the assistant of an apothecary when he settled in Regensburg. He became very successful in Regensburg that he managed to purchase a house and apothecary shop in 1712. His business insight was such that he was able to purchase an apothecary which had gone bankrupt, and turn it into a profitable shop. After his first marriage Weinmann became embroiled in a dispute with the local physicians and apothecaries. The dispute was brought about in 1713 by his appointment as Hospital Apothecary. The Town Council intervened in 1715 to resolve the dispute. The local physicians and apothecaries were instructed not to trouble him again, while Weinmann was reprimanded. He soon resumed his successful career, becoming a town councilor, then a commercial assessor, and finally a city assessor. Framed Johann Wilhelm Weinmann art are today very popular especially with botanists and other art collectors. They can be found in many institutions all over the world.