Thornton's labor of love
A man ruined by his impassioned quest. By Werner Dressendörfer. Excerpt from the book 'Robert John Thornton. The Temple of Flora'
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Thornton's inheritance allowed him to commission renowned English painters to depict the desired plants as impressive illustrations for his botanical work. In order to tap at least one further possible financial source (in addition to the lagging book sales), Thornton also set up a gallery in London under the name "Dr. Thornton's Linnaean Gallery". But all his efforts proved futile. Thornton had to break off his ambitious project prematurely. He saw himself forced to inform his subscribers that the project would not contain the 70 different plant plates that had originally been planned: regrettably, less than half of the Picturesque Botanical Colored Plates would be completed. In order to rescue as much as possible, Thornton decided to hold a lottery. The hope of saving his project financially remained unfulfilled. In his attempt to realize his dream over the years, Robert John Thornton plunged himself into financial ruin. His bold design to create a magnificent work with famous artists at his own expense had failed.
The plates in The Temple of Flora remain outstanding and unique. Neither before nor after Thornton has anyone created such compellingly monumental images of flowers, set portrait-like in their typical landscapes. Thornton's achievement represents an early document of a scientific interest in botany, which is expressed with the formal language of Romantic sensibilities - as a reflection of a fascinating age. To this day, the plates continue to exert an extraordinary charm. Thornton presents the plants in their original environments, or at least in those the painters assumed were original. For both the botanist and the layperson, it is important to be acquainted with the natural environment of plants. Flower lovers and garden enthusiasts alike will have longed to possess the exotic plants depicted in the Temple's pages and to introduce the extravagant varieties into their gardens.
Thornton's Temple remained uncompleted. The fact that even - or, indeed, precisely - an unfinished work exerts a unique allure is ultimately substantiated by the ruin depicted in the cereus print, the most famous illustration of all the book's splendid engravings.
Page [1] [2]
Page [1] [2]
Thornton's inheritance allowed him to commission renowned English painters to depict the desired plants as impressive illustrations for his botanical work. In order to tap at least one further possible financial source (in addition to the lagging book sales), Thornton also set up a gallery in London under the name "Dr. Thornton's Linnaean Gallery". But all his efforts proved futile. Thornton had to break off his ambitious project prematurely. He saw himself forced to inform his subscribers that the project would not contain the 70 different plant plates that had originally been planned: regrettably, less than half of the Picturesque Botanical Colored Plates would be completed. In order to rescue as much as possible, Thornton decided to hold a lottery. The hope of saving his project financially remained unfulfilled. In his attempt to realize his dream over the years, Robert John Thornton plunged himself into financial ruin. His bold design to create a magnificent work with famous artists at his own expense had failed.
The plates in The Temple of Flora remain outstanding and unique. Neither before nor after Thornton has anyone created such compellingly monumental images of flowers, set portrait-like in their typical landscapes. Thornton's achievement represents an early document of a scientific interest in botany, which is expressed with the formal language of Romantic sensibilities - as a reflection of a fascinating age. To this day, the plates continue to exert an extraordinary charm. Thornton presents the plants in their original environments, or at least in those the painters assumed were original. For both the botanist and the layperson, it is important to be acquainted with the natural environment of plants. Flower lovers and garden enthusiasts alike will have longed to possess the exotic plants depicted in the Temple's pages and to introduce the extravagant varieties into their gardens.
Thornton's Temple remained uncompleted. The fact that even - or, indeed, precisely - an unfinished work exerts a unique allure is ultimately substantiated by the ruin depicted in the cereus print, the most famous illustration of all the book's splendid engravings.
Page [1] [2]
Thornton, Temple of Flora
Loose Leaf collection with 33 Fine Art Prints, Booklet, Box, 42.8 x 53 cm (16.9 x 20.9 in.), 110 pages
$ 150.00
$ 150.00
The complete reprint of all color plates from Robert John Thornton's monumental work The Temple of Flora, first published in London in 1799
Large Flowering Sensitive Plant. Painter: Philip Reinagle, Engraver: Joseph Constantine Stadle, 1799