Franz Antoine (1815–1886) was an Austrian botanist and horticulturalist who served as court gardener at the Imperial Gardens of Schönbrunn in Vienna, one of the most celebrated horticultural establishments in nineteenth-century Europe. His career unfolded at the intersection of scientific botany and the decorative arts of the garden, positioning him as a key figure in the cultivation and documentation of exotic plant species that were then flooding into European collections from expeditions around the globe.

Antoine's principal contribution to visual culture was his role in the production of botanical illustration, overseeing and contributing to lavishly produced publications that documented the plant collections under his care at Schönbrunn. These works combined scientific accuracy with the aesthetic ambitions of the finest botanical publishing of the period, situating them within the tradition of illustrated botanical monographs that counted among the most beautiful printed books of the nineteenth century. His publications on conifers and palms were particularly valued by both scientists and collectors.

Working within the imperial context gave Antoine access to an extraordinary range of living plant specimens, and his documentation of these collections served both the practical needs of botanical science and the cultural prestige of the Habsburg court. The illustrations produced under his direction reflect the high standard of Viennese craft and the period's conviction that scientific knowledge and artistic beauty were complementary rather than competing values.

Antoine's legacy rests on his contributions to the documentation of plant diversity at a moment when European botanical gardens were transforming from aristocratic curiosities into institutions of serious scientific inquiry. His published works remain primary sources for historians of botany and the history of botanical art.