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Press Kit:

Darwin’s Garden: An Evolutionary Adventure

Oct. 4, 2008 - Jan. 5, 2009

Library West Hall

Next year marks the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of Origin of Species. To commemorate the occasion, the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) opened this exhibition in April 2008; The Huntington will be its only traveling venue. The exhibition explores the botanical influences on Darwin’s formative years in education, their impact on Origin of Species, and Darwin’s place in the field of evolutionary botany. More than 60 items will be on display, including rare books, manuscripts, and prints from the NYBG collection and loans from private individuals and institutions. The Huntington will display its own copies of a selection of items from the exhibition checklist.

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Photo Captions

Barraud photo	Last photo of Charles Darwin, by Herbert Rose Barraud (1845–1896), 1881. Huntington Library.
Jeens engraving	Charles Darwin, engraving by C. H. Jeens (1827–1879), after 1860. Courtesy of LuEsther T. Mertz Library, the New York Botanical Garden.
Darwin as child	Charles Darwin, age 6, with his sister Catherine. Chalk drawing, 1816, by Ellen Sharples (1760–1849). By kind permission of Darwin Heirlooms Trust. © English Heritage Photo Library.
Beagle	HMS Beagle. Courtesy of LuEsther T. Mertz Library, the New York Botanical Garden.
Tree of Life	Darwin’s first sketch of the evolutionary tree of life, 1837. By permission of the Syndics of the Cambridge University Library.
Orchid	Orchid (Angraecum sesquipedale), Robert Warner (1815-1896). Select Orchidaceous Plants. Darwin predicted that there must be an insect with a proboscis adapted to reach the flower’s nectar at the base of the long spur of this beautiful orchid from Madagascar. Nearly 40 years later, he was proven correct. Courtesy of LuEsther T. Mertz Library, the New York Botanical Garden.
Hooke	Arguably the most famous plant illustration in the history of science. It shows the Mimosa sensitiva, which folds its fronds upon touch. Hooke’s illustrations depict microscopic views of the plant before and after touch. From Robert Hooke (1635–1703), Micrographia (1665). Courtesy of LuEsther T. Mertz Library, the New York Botanical Garden.