Treasures of the Month

The embroidery pattern book of Guillaume Toulouze (1656)
Natural history served as a subject for art and crafts for mid-seventeenth century French ladies. Isabelle Charmantier, Head of Collections, finds playful traces of three young French girls in a rare book.
1st March 2022

Tabernaemontanus’s 17th-Century Herbal: To Repair, or Not to Repair?
When a 17th-century book starts to decay, do you repair or preserve it? Conservator Janet Ashdown looks at an item from Linnaeus's personal library to explore the solutions.
21st January 2022

"The Librarian's Nightmare": James Bateman's Orchidaceae of Mexico and Guatemala
Our librarian Will Beharrell examines one of our most prized—and most challenging—books
10th January 2022

The Photographic Portraits Collection
Smile! Digital Assets Manager Andrea Deneau looks at our collection of photographic portraits
19th November 2021

The Medals of Rosemary Lowe-McConnell
Curator of Artefacts Glenn Benson takes a look at three recent and invaluable donations to the Society's collections
1st November 2021

Under England’s famous old oak tree: John Clayton’s account of the Cowthorpe Oak
Assistant Archivist Luke Thorne examines an old account about an ancient giant of nature for this edition of Treasure of the Month.
1st October 2021