Description

<P>Hailed by the press as a publishing phenomenon, The Country Flowers of a Victorian Lady is a classic work that will "change the way we look at flowers forever" (Mail on Sunday, London).</P><P>Over the past 150 years Fanny Robinson's "Book of Memory," as she called it, has been enjoyed as a treasured heirloom by her family. Now, for the first time, her beautiful work -- arguably the most exquisite collection of Victorian flower paintings in existence -- can be appreciated by all.</P><P>Fanny's exceptional book combines elegant watercolors with evocative poetry that is finely illuminated in the manner of a medieval Book of Hours. Using the symbolic Language of Flowers, she invests each flower grouping with subtle and often highly romantic meanings -- indeed, it is thought that the volume was intended as a lasting tribute to a lost lover.</P><P>In her fascinating commentary on the paintings, Gill Saunders, a senior curator in the Department of Prints, Drawings and Paintings at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, explains the intriguing floral symbolism and takes the reader on a delightful journey into Fanny Robinson's leisured and cultivated world of flower, pen and brush.</P>