The Library has a large collection of illustrations of flora and fauna, including original drawings and paintings, published work and proof copies of published material.
There are approximately 3,800 drawings of plants and animals, many of them illustrations to accompany papers sent for publication in the Society’s journals.
One of the premier collections of drawings is a series of watercolours of Indian and Nepalese plants and animals, probably painted by Indian artists, which were collected by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton between 1794 and 1815.
A major collection of animal art is contained in 39 large volumes of printed illustrations, drawings, photographs and printed ephemera on terrestrial and marine fauna of all regions, amassed by Albert C L G Gunther, thirteenth President of the Linnean Society.
Almost comparable in size is the 20 volume set of almost 900 watercolours of British flowering plants, painted by Joshua Gwatkin in the first third of the last century. In addition, the Library holds more unusual illustrative works, among them Anna Atkins’ cyanotypes, fern prints by Mrs Glaisher, and nature prints by Alois Auer and John Stair.
Also of note are several volumes of watercolours of shells, worms, molluscs, and birds, painted by Eliza Dorville as illustrations to works by George Montagu; and six albums of watercolour drawings of wild flowers by Emilia Noel.
There are also proof copies of well-known works, including James Sowerby’s illustrations to James Edward Smith’s Plantarum Icones.
