"《自然珍品陈列柜》是18世纪最伟大的自然历史成就之一，并且仍然是有史以来最有价值的自然史书籍之一。尽管他那个时代的科学家经常收集自然标本用于研究，但阿姆斯特丹的药剂师阿尔伯特•塞巴（Albertus Seba，1665-1736）的热情无与伦比。他收集的来自世界各地的动植物和昆虫数量惊人，使他名扬四海。

经过几十年的收集，1731年，塞巴请人为每一个标本精心绘制插画，这些作品往往都是写实的。带着这些一丝不苟的绘画，他安排出版了一部四卷本的目录，涵盖了收集的所有标本，从奇特的外来植物到蛇，青蛙，鳄鱼，贝类，珊瑚，鸟类和蝴蝶以及现在已灭绝的动物。这本畅销合集取材于罕见的手工上色原版，用一篇序言将塞巴收集的珍品所属的自然藏品的有趣传统置于其背景下考虑。

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"The Cabinet of Natural Curiosities is one of the 18th century's greatest natural history achievements and remains one of the most prized natural history books of all time. Though scientists of his era often collected natural specimens for research purposes, Amsterdam-based pharmacist Albertus Seba (1665-1736) was unrivaled in his passion. His amazing collection of animals, plants, and insects from all around the world earned him international fame.

In 1731, after decades of collecting, Seba commissioned careful and often scenic illustrations of every specimen. With these meticulous drawings, he arranged for the publication of a four-volume catalog, covering the entire collection from strange and exotic plants to snakes, frogs, crocodiles, shellfish, corals, birds, and butterflies, as well as creatures that are now extinct. Taken from a rare hand-colored original, the best-selling collection features an introduction that contextualizes the fascinating tradition of natural collections to which Seba's curiosities belonged.

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