Antique Orchid Print No. 7
Buy this print on Etsy →A breathtaking example of Victorian botanical art, this orchid print comes from 'Reichenbachia: Orchids Illustrated and Described' - the most lavish orchid book ever produced, published in the late 1880s and 1890s by the celebrated 'Orchid King,' Frederick Sander. Against a soft, aged ground, an exotic orchid is rendered life-size with exquisite delicacy, every petal, curve and marking captured in luminous colour. It is at once a precise scientific record and a genuinely gorgeous work of art.
The story behind the book is as extravagant as the flowers. Frederick Sander ran an orchid empire from St Albans in England, employing plant hunters who scoured the tropics of Asia and the Americas for rare specimens during the height of 'orchidelirium,' the Victorian craze for these coveted blooms. To celebrate his collection he commissioned 'Reichenbachia' - named in honour of the great orchidologist H. G. Reichenbach - as a deliberately enormous, sumptuous folio, its plates drawn largely by the gifted botanical artist Henry Moon and printed to the very highest standard of the day. Original volumes are now rare and highly prized.
What makes these plates so special is the balance they strike: botanically exact enough to identify the species, yet composed with real artistry, so the orchid seems to float on the page in all its sculptural, otherworldly beauty. Few flowers carry as much elegance and mystique as the orchid, and few illustrations have ever done them more justice.
As wall art it is effortlessly elegant. The soft colours and graceful form make it a natural for a bedroom, bathroom, living room or plant-filled space, and it suits cottagecore, tropical, botanical and classic interiors alike. It is a lovely gift for orchid growers, gardeners, plant lovers and anyone drawn to vintage botanical art, and it looks especially beautiful grouped with other orchid or flower plates in a gallery wall.
Because the original was published in the nineteenth century, it is firmly in the public domain, which is why we can reproduce it at full museum quality.
Each print is a archival-matte reproduction on premium archival matte paper, faithfully capturing the delicate colour, fine detail and soft antique paper of the original plate - ready to frame and enjoy for years to come.
