This is an anthology of flowers in paintings, prose and poetry. It is an enchanting gift book for flower lovers everywhere, perfect for any occasion. It features beautiful floral paintings by Daniel Sherrin, Johan Laurentz Jensen, Mary Elizabeth Duffield, Madeleine Lemaire, Maria Dorothea Krabbe, Lais Hansen, and more. It presents poetry and prose extracts from the great writers of the Victorian period, including Algernon Charles Swinburne, Emily Bronte, William Wordsworth, William Cowper, John Keats, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and many more. You can learn the meanings of flowers and the delightful symbolism and vocabulary invented by the Victorians. Flowers have always been cherished for their transient beauty and wonderful fragrance: from the tiny bell-like snowdrop to the majestic golden lily, and from Alcea to Viola, they have been written, portrayed in art, and sung about for centuries. As well as being loved for their beauty and fragrance, flowers have also come to symbolize certain ideas, messages and feelings, never more so than in the nineteenth century when the folklore and symbolism of flowers so preoccupied Victorian ladies and their gentlemen admirers. The classic pieces by celebrated writers in this anthology are accompanied by over 80 beautiful period paintings and painstakingly accurate botanical illustrations. Exquisitely designed, this is the perfect gift for flower lovers everywhere.