Album with botanical and pomological drawings, all coloured with gouache, apparently by the artist, Elise Brunner (1831-1890). Brunner was one of the earliest Swiss female alpinists. She was initiated to the joys of mountaineering by her brothers Wilhelm and Max Brunner, both capable mountaineers. Especially Wilhelm and Elise crossed many mountains together. In their time, her mountain travels were an unusual achievement for a woman. She is one of the female pioneers of mountain tourism for women, setting the stage for the Schweizer Frauen-Alpenclub (SFAC), which would be founded in 1918. The present drawings, made in her younger years (possibly in the surroundings of her native city Bern?) show several plants, including flowers and fruits, and demonstrate her exquisite skill and knowledge as a botanist who appreciated the both the Swiss natural environment and her mountainous adventures.
Binding only very slightly worn around the edges, minor foxing on some blank leaves at the end, but overall a beautiful album with fine and bright coloured drawings in very good condition. For Elise Brunner: www.sac-cas.ch (website of the Schweizer Alpen-Club SAC).