Initially, taxonomy or the classification of plants was haphazard and inconsistent. In the 17th century there gradually developed a new system, based on the physical similarities between the reproductive features of plants. Thus illustration, which in the herbal tradition had been simply a means of distinguishing one plant from another, now took on the role of analytic tool. It was used to record the detailed physical character of the plant and show the similarity of characteristics.

In this image Miller displays a sunflower at different stages of development to give a fuller picture of the plant's lifecycle. The book from which this illustration is taken attempted to illustrate the Linnaean classification system. Devised by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus, this system organised species according to the physical similarities of their reproductive parts.

Miller's 'Illustration of the Sexual System of Linnaeus' was one of the most successful books of the time. The publication appeared in parts between 1770 and 1777. The plants illustrated are mostly common varieties such as this sunflower. Linnaeus himself praised its illustrations as 'more beautiful and more accurate than any since the world began.'