sibthorp met the botanical illustrator bauer in vienna, where he had made a voyage to study a copy of dioscorides' early botanical work, the renowned vienna dioscurides. this was the first part of a journey, to identify medicinal plants used in greece; bauer was to join the expedition as the illustrator. they were to record and collect a large number of novel specimens; their publication introduced these to an english audience. from march 1786 to december 1787 they surveyed the plants and animals of the eastern mediterranean, sibthorp collecting and describing, bauer making dried specimens and producing colour-coded sketches. bauer's work, including around a thousand intricate and annotated sketches, is now regarded as one of the finest examples of botanical illustration.