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  • Calacedrus decurrens (Incense cedar)
  • Measuring heaps of incense.
  • Ptolemaic pharaoh offering incense to Horus, wall relief
  • A woman diviner burning incense. Watercolour by Zhou Pei Qun, ca. 1890.
  • A Chinese street vendor selling incense powders and sticks. Coloured stipple engraving by J. Dadley after Pu-Qua.
  • A virtuous Athenian woman pouring incense on to a flaming tripod. Engraving by J.J. Flipart after J.M. Vien.
  • A recumbent Chinese man surrounded by women in prayer and other attendants burning incense etc. Painting by a Chinese artist, ca. 1850.
  • A young woman wearing a crown deposists a flower garland on a tomb and burns incense on a stone nearby. Line engraving.
  • God appears radiantly behind a black cloud as Moses swings an incense burner; four people are washing their feet and hands in preparation. Etching.
  • A Lohan (disciple of Buddha), seated on a rock beside an incense-burner (?), holding a tablet. Woodcut in the manner of an ink stone rubbing, China, 18--?.
  • The sense of smell: a man lying in bed smells flowers as another lights some incense, above, a priest stands before a burning sacrifice of a lamb. Engraving after G. Collaert, 1630, after N. van der Horst.
  • The sense of smell: a man lying in bed smells flowers as another lights some incense, above, a priest stands before a burning sacrifice of a lamb. Engraving after G. Collaert, 1630, after N. van der Horst.
  • Illicium verum Hook.f. Illiciaceae Chinese Star Anise Distribution: China. Illicium anisatum Japanese Star Anise. Distribution Japan. Illicium verum is used as a spice in Asian cooking and for Star Anise tea. The distilled oil is added to cough mixture used by children. Introduced to Europe in 1588 (Pharmacographia Indica, 1890). Illicium anisatum syn. religiosum, has been confused with it (Lindley, 1838, Bentley 1861) but is poisonous and was used to make incense in Japanese and Chinese temples. It was called Skimi by Kaempfer. The seed pods of both species contain shikimic acid (the name being derived from the Japanese word for the plant - shi-kimi) from which Tamiflu, the antiviral drug was synthesised. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Illicium anisatum L. Illiciaceae Japanese Star Anise. Distribution Japan. This was also called Illicium religiosum and the fruits are toxic. Effects of taking Illicium anisatum tea include epilepsy, vomiting, shakiness and rapid eye movements (US Food and Drug Administration report, 2003). Lindley (1838) and Bentley (1861) thought that I. anisatum was used in cooking, but they were describing the uses of I. verum which is used as a spice in Asia. Illicium anisatum syn. religiosum is 'used to make incense in Japanese and Chinese temples and was called Skimi by Kaempfer. This derives from the Japanese word 'shi-kimi'. The seed pods of both species contain shikimic acid (the name being derived from the Japanese) from which Tamiflu, the antiviral drug was synthesised. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Amoy, Fukien province, China. Photograph by John Thomson, 1870/1871.
  • Amoy, Fukien province, China. Photograph by John Thomson, 1870/1871.
  • Amoy, Fukien province, China. Photograph, 1981, from a negative by John Thomson, 1870/1871.
  • Anatomical figures on a cliff by the sea, their heads illuminated by light. Line engraving and etching by B. Probst, 1735.
  • The child Samuel tells the priest Eli of the fate God has in store for him. Engraving by H. Moses, 1829, after J.S. Copley.
  • An angel intervenes as Abraham prepares to sacrifice Isaac. Mezzotint.
  • An angel descends as Abraham prepares to sacrifice Isaac; the ram lurks in the bushes. Line engraving.
  • The Temple of Solomon, its grounds and some of its interiors. Engraving.
  • The Virgin Mary carried to the grave by the apostles. Etching.
  • The resurrected Christ appears before the apostles and other people. Etching.
  • Satyrs grouped around a statue, displaying the attributes of greed and venality. Etching by J. Audran after C. Gillot.
  • A radiant Samuel brings word from God to Eli. Line engraving by A.W. Warren, 1816, after E. Bird.
  • The funeral of a Chinese merchant's wife in Hong Kong. Wood engraving after G.W. Cooke (?), 1859.
  • The child Samuel tells Eli about God's displeasure with him. Wood engraving by A.R. Branston after R. Westall.
  • The adoration of the magi. Engraving by R. Sadeler after J. Bassano.
  • The infant Jesus grabs at the gold offered to him by the Magi. Engraving by S.A. Bolswert after Sir P.P. Rubens.