The Flower of Empire: An Amazonian Water Lily, The Quest to Make it Bloom, and the World it Created

A Look Inside The Flower of Empire: An Amazonian Water Lily, The Quest to Make it Bloom, and the World it Created [Click Images to Enlarge]

The British Empire, later 19th century

Queen Victoria, the “Rosebud of England” (The Victoria and Albert Museum, London)

The Victoria water lily in cultivation today (Kit Knotts & Victoria-Adventure)

The Crystal Palace, erected for the Great Exhibition of 1851 (The Victoria and Albert Museum, London)Victoria Regia, the “Queen of Aquatics” (Courtesy of the Trustees of the National Library of Scotland).Inside the 1851 hothouse of industry (The Victoria and Albert Museum, London)