The Lost Orchid: A Story of Victorian Plunder and Obsession

by Sarah Bilston

The forgotten story of a decades-long international quest for a rare and coveted orchid, chronicling the botanists, plant hunters, and collectors who relentlessly pursued it at great human and environmental cost.

In 1818, a curious root arrived in a small English village, tucked--seemingly by accident--in a packing case mailed from Brazil. The amateur botanist who cultivated it soon realized that he had something remarkable on his...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674272609
• ISBN13: 9780674272606
• Release Date: May 2025
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 1.77 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.1" x 9.3"