Curtis Botanical – Plate 6637 – Spotted Ponthieva / Shadow Witch Orchid

Original antique black-and-white print from Curtis's Botanical Magazine — Plate 6637.

A small terrestrial orchid from the cloud forests of the Americas with delicate, spotted flowers — maculata means 'spotted.' The common name 'shadow witch' refers to its habit of growing in deep forest shade. Ponthieva is named for Henri de Ponthieu, an 18th-century merchant and plant collector.

Native Ponthieva orchids grow in Florida, Texas, Georgia, and Virginia — any customer from the Southeast will be surprised to learn this is partly an American genus.

Uncolored plate. Condition consistent with age of volume. Each print is a unique piece of botanical history, printed on paper aged over a century.

This plate originated with the Royal Horticultural Society and passed through Wheldon & Wesley, one of the great natural history dealers of the 20th century. We came into the archive by accident and have spent the time since trying to share it as widely as we can.