New Delhi, Institute for the Advancement of Science and Culture, 1965. 4to (24.1 x 18.3 cm). Frontispiece photo (of Hugo de Vries standing next to and dwarfed by a flower of Amorphophallus titanum Becc.); [ii], 228 pp.; 21 text figures, plate. Publisher's embossed cloth with gilt title on the spine and front board.

U N I Q U E C O P Y with many text corrections by the author, who dedicated this copy to a scientific institute in the Netherlands. Adriaan Dirk Jacob Meeuse (1914-2010) was a Dutch botany professor at the University of Amsterdam, known for his unorthodox views on plant phylogeny. In this work he puts forward the theory that flowering plants are polyphyletic and date back much longer than generally accepted - a heretic view until this century, and which may explain the (then) unusual publishing company. Chapter 13 is titled "The solution of Darwin's abominable mystery", and that may be true indeed. This work was published in the series Advancing frontiers of plant sciences, volume 11, edited by L. Chandra. Signed dedication by the author on the front free endpaper, stamp on title, text corrections by the author. Boards a bit rubbed, otherwise a good, clean copy.