Botanical Art Gallery

Cattleya superba, 1838

Watercolour on paper. Original drawing for plate XXII in John Lindley's Sertum orchidaceum: a wreath of the most beautiful orchidaceous flowers; selected by John Lindley, published in 1838. Illustration shows study in sepia of leaves, flowers and roots. Also small drawing lower right in grey tones detailing the lip of the flower. Drawing inscribed on lower left corner Rec'd Sept.15, 1925 in unknown hand. Paper has discoloured across lower edge. Paper is watermarked Smith & Allnut 1834

© The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Tamarindus indica, tamarind

Hand painted copy of an illustration of tamarind, commissioned by William Roxburgh. In his Flora Indica, Roxburgh describes this species as a magnificent tree, one of the largest in India. It generally flowers in May and ripens its fruit during the cold season. Roxburgh also reports an extract of a letter of Captain Pringle at Lucknow, where the qualities and the uses of various parts of this plant are explained. Other names: Tintri, Tintiree (Sanskrit); Tintiree, Tintil, Tentool (Bengali); Umli, Amli (Hindi); Chinta-chittoo (Telugu)

© The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Walter Fitch, Llewllyn House, Kew

Walter Fitch, Llewllyn House, Kew. Presented by his widow in 1904. Walter Fitch (1817-1892) was appointed as a botanical artist for Curtis Botanical magazine by William Hooker. Over a period of forty years he produced illustrations of more than 2700 plants and published more than 10, 000 in total. He was known for his great skill as a lithographer, working directly onto a metal or stone plate without making preliminary sketches

© RBG KEW