Introduction: The challenge of flowering plant history; Morphology and leaf architecture of glossopterids and other reticulate gymnosperm leaves; A new gnetophyte from the Late Carnian (Late Triassic) of Texas and its bearing on the origin of the angiosperm carpel and stamen; Wood anatomy of primitive angiosperms: new perspectives and syntheses; Evidence for the earliest stage of angiosperm pollen evolution: a paleoequatorial section from Israel; The origin and evolution of the angiosperm carpel; Floral structure, development and relationships of paleoherbs: Saruma, Cabomba, Lactoris and selected Piperales; The origin of the angiosperm flower; Evidence for, and implications of, an herbaceous origin of angiosperms; Comparison of alternative hypotheses for the origin of the angiosperms; The least specialized angiosperms; Molecular phylogeny and the diversification of the angiosperms; Appendix: Stratigraphic timescale; Index.