Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is celebrating the return of a long-lost collection of botanical illustrations by Lilian Snelling, one of the greatest botanical artists of the 20th century.
The rediscovered artworks, originally created at the Edinburgh Garden when Snelling took up post during the First World War, were identified at auction by Cornish bookseller Tim Loe, a specialist in rare books and botanical art.
Snelling’s illustrations, known for their meticulous scientific accuracy and artistic beauty, had been part of a private collection amassed by the late taxonomist and botanical art collector Vicki Matthews before being discovered at auction. Many of the pieces had been dispersed over time, with some believed to be lost. However, thanks to Mr Loe’s expertise, these invaluable works have now returned to their rightful home at the research institute.
Lorna Mitchell, Head of Library Services at RBGE, said: “We were incredibly grateful that Tim reached out to us, allowing us to return these long-lost pieces to our collection. If they had gone on the open market, the chances of us being able to purchase them would have been slim. Once they were clearly identified as Snelling’s, a whole new level of interest would have driven up their value.”
Snelling, who worked at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh between 1917 and 1921, produced an extraordinary body of work, much of it featuring newly described and named species of plants including some that were used to illustrate articles in Curtis’s Botanical Magazine. However, over the years, many of her pieces became scattered, misplaced, or forgotten. With the additional drawings found by Mr Loe, RBGE now holds over 500 of Snelling’s botanical illustrations, but experts believe many more remain unaccounted for.
Tim Loe, owner of Loe Books in Cornwall, said: “Some of the pieces were labelled only with “LS”, which initially made their attribution uncertain. However, as soon as I saw the quality of the work, everything fell into place, and I knew I had to do everything in my power to acquire it.”
Rather than allowing the artworks to be sold on the open market, Mr Loe contacted RBGE directly, ensuring that they would be preserved in the organisation’s Herbarium for future generations.
As part of Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s commitment to making its collections more accessible, the newly returned Snelling artworks have been digitised and will be made available in their online database.
Lorna Mitchell added: “To date, we’ve listed about 8,500 individual artworks in our digital collection. As we list them, they are photographed, which means we can share them more widely. Not everyone can visit Edinburgh, so being able to offer digital access is a key way to open up these incredible pieces to a global audience.”
The rediscovery and return of Snelling’s work highlights the importance of botanical illustration, not only as an art form but as a vital tool in scientific research. It also underscores the crucial role of collectors, institutions, and individuals working together to preserve and share these invaluable resources.
For more information on the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s extensive art collection, visit https://www.rbge.org.uk/science-and-conservation/library-and-archives/library-collections/image-collection/.
