'Nature's Garland' exhibition opens today at Kroch Library

"Nature's Garland," a new exhibition now on display in the Carl A. Kroch Library, provides a rare opportunity to see some of Cornell University Library's most beautiful books on botany.

Drawn primarily from the History of Science Collection in the library's Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, "Nature's Garland" traces the history of botanical illustration from the 15th through the 19th centuries. The history of botanical illustration is marked by the movement from a domestic and practical focus on medicinal herbs to a wide-ranging interest, both aesthetic and scientific, in plant species from all over the world. Cornell's holdings are particularly strong in 18th- and 19th-century botany, but 16th-century herbals also make a strong showing in the collection. Among the volumes on display are extraordinary hand-colored flower books, early works on medicinal herbs and rare books on gardens.

To celebrate the opening of the exhibition, local author Jen Hill will give a lecture titled "Digging for Happiness: The 19th-Century Garden" today, June 8, at 4:30 p.m. in Hollis E. Cornell Auditorium of Goldwin Smith Hall. A reception will follow at 5:30 p.m. in the Kroch Library Exhibition Gallery.

A recipient of the Clark Award for excellence in undergraduate teaching in the College of Arts and Sciences, Hill is the editor of An Exhilaration of Wings: The Literature of Birdwatching (1999) and a Ph.D. candidate in English at Cornell. She currently is working on a new book on 18th- and 19th-century American and British gardening and has conducted much of her research in Cornell's rare book and manuscript collections. Her presentation will focus on Victorian garden writing and design.

Another reunion weekend program for those with an interest in botanical history is "A Rose Is More Than a Rose: The Language of Flowers Special Collection at Mann Library," on Friday, June 9, from 10 to 11 a.m. in the Mann Library Conference Room. This talk and slide show presented by Mann Library's special collections librarians will introduce the library's renowned Language of Flowers collection, which includes exquisite examples of illustrated florigraphy of the 19th and early 20th centuries. A display will highlight individual volumes and the conservation work being done to preserve them. For more information, contact Linda Stewart at 255-9022 or send e-mail to <lgs1@cornell.edu>.

"Nature's Garland" will be on view this summer through Aug. 8. The Kroch Library Exhibition Gallery, located on level 2B, is open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. During reunion weekend, the gallery also will be open Saturday, June 10, from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, contact Katherine Reagan, curator of rare books, at 255-3530 or send e-mail to kr33@cornell.edu