Bragging Rights - Starting in the 16C, it became fashionable for the well-to-do gentlemen to attempt to outdo one another in amassing large collections of exotic plants. Engraving by Crispijn van de Passe, not, of course, the original intent of this engraving...
Explore & Collect...The earliest herbals were books of plants made for the study of medicine & botany. Herbals were produced both to identify plants correctly in order to to treat illnesses, & also to classify the many new plants arriving in Europe from the Near East & the Americas. Starting in the late 16C, it became fashionable for nobles & wealthy aristocrats to try to compete with one another in amassing large collections of exotic, unusual plants from faraway places. While the classification of plants resembled that of the practical medicinal herbals, collectors now emphasized plants’ ornamental qualities rather than medicinal value.
An increased flow of exotic ornamentals from the Middle East, South Africa & the Americas appeared in England & the Early American Republic by the end of the 18C, encouraging a passion for plant collecting & botany among the upper classes, as well as among tradesmen who competed with one-another to develop dependable, ideal forms of flowers for sale. By the 19C, the enthusiasm for botany, flowers, & exotic plants was spreading to all levels of society & so was the profit made from their sale.
