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| The Country Flowers of a Victorian Lady | 
 enlarge | Author: Fanny Robinson
Publisher: HarperCollins
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy New: $0.45
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (2 reviews)
Sales Rank: 1069473
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 96
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 8 x 0.8
ISBN: 006019703X
Dewey Decimal Number: 508
EAN: 9780060197032
ASIN: 006019703X
Publication Date: May 1, 2000
Release Date: April 26, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
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). 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. 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. 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.
Amazon.com Review
With its wealth of charming watercolors, poems, and notes on the language of flowers, The Country Flowers of a Victorian Lady is destined to be a coffee-table fixture in the home of any lover of old-fashioned flowers. Kept as a private family keepsake for several generations, this gorgeous book was originally created by Fanny Robinson, who lived a quiet English country life in the last half of the 19th century. The rich, creamy paper provides a perfect backdrop for Robinson's drawings, and for those who have difficulty reading ornate penmanship, her fanciful poetry is copied onto each painting's facing page in an easily readable typeface. Most flowers tend toward the fragrantly romantic--scented geraniums, violets, pansies, and rosebuds of all types appear frequently--and researcher Gill Saunders provides fascinating comments on the historical language of flowers, providing a contextual framework to Robinson's poetry and pictures. One print shows a flowing nosegay of pansies, fuchsia, yew, and Canterbury bells, with this accompanying poem: "I have here only a nosegay of culled / flowers and have brought nothing / of my own, but the string that ties them." When we learn that pansies were sent to loved ones as a token of remembrance, and that yew was "an emblem of sadness and sorrow," readers are given a clear view not just of exquisite art but of the emotions that gave rise to that particular painting. There are plenty of happier pages as well--seasonal celebrations, love poems, memories of childhood--that gardeners, historians, poets, and artists will love. You'll want to send a thank-you bouquet to this talented woman for the generous gift of her closing poem: "The fruits I have gathered of memory / the ripened harvest of my musings / these I give unto thee." --Jill Lightner
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| Customer Reviews:
Excellent in Beauty and Historical Value March 29, 2002
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
"Country Flowers of a Victorian Lady" is a wonderful book of botanical watercolors made as a personal album by Fanny Robinson in the latter half of the 1800's. Watercolor painting at that time was considered an acceptable and edifying pastime for women both young and old, and this grouping of flower portraits is superb. The comentaries on the facing pages offer quality insight into the hidden meanings of the flower groupings and educated speculation on the unknown aspects surrounding each picture.
I highly recommend this book for flower lovers, watercolor painting enthusiasts, and students of victorian culture. I participate in historic role acting, and this is one book I will request be added to the library of training materials for the program.
Mixed Emotions~ April 10, 2000
"Exqusite" is one of the many words I could use to describe this book. The most beautiful collection of Victorian watercolors one will ever see. The images were taken directly from an album that was created by Fanny Robinson (1802-1872) entitled "The Book of Memory". The author wove a mystery throughout her album. Each gorgeous watercolor is accompanied by a handwritten poem, which leaves the reader musing as to whom, or what, the verses were written. Was it a lost love...? a faded youth....?She added a phrase on the front of her "Book of Memory" that is so very true "O, like a book of sport thou'lt read me o're ! but theres more in me than thou'lt understand". The Language of Flowers has never been more beautifully...or dramatically, illustrated. I will treasure this book, and a copy for my daughter is inevitible. I wish I could rate it more than five stars...
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