Orchid: A Cultural History

by Jim Endersby

At once delicate, exotic, and elegant, orchids are beloved for their singular, instantly recognizable beauty. Found in nearly every climate, the many species of orchid have carried symbolic weight in countless cultures over time. The ancient Greeks associated them with fertility and thought that parents who ingested orchid root tubers could control the sex of their child. During the Victorian era, orchids became deeply associated with romance and seduction. And in twentieth-century hard-boiled detective stories, they transformed into symbols of decadence, secrecy, and cunning. What is it about the orchid that has enthralled the imagination for so many centuries? And why do they still provoke so much wonder?
 
Following the stories of orchids throughout history, Jim Endersby divides our attraction to them into four key science, empire, sex, and death. When it comes to empire, for instance, orchids are a prime example of the exotic riches sought by Europeans as they shaped their plans for colonization. He also reveals how Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution became intimately entangled with the story of the orchid as he investigated their methods of cross-pollination. As he shows, orchids—perhaps because of their extraordinarily diverse colors, shapes, and sizes—have also bloomed repeatedly in films, novels, plays, and poems, from Shakespeare to science fiction, from thrillers to elaborate modernist novels.
 
Featuring many gorgeous illustrations from the collection of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, A Cultural History tells, for the first time, the extraordinary story of orchids and our prolific interest in them. It is an enchanting tale not only for gardeners and plant collectors, but anyone curious about the flower’s obsessive hold on the imagination in history, cinema, literature, and more.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Nature

288 pages, Hardcover

First published November 7, 2016

About the author

I am historian of science, based at the University of Sussex, in the UK.

I did my first degree at the University of New South Wales, in Sydney, Australia (where I lived for ten years), then a Master's degree and a PhD at the University of Cambridge.

I try to write for both general and academic audiences, trying to ensure that my supposedly popular books are scholarly enough not to disgrace me in front of my academic colleagues, and that my scholarly books are readable enough not to send people to sleep. (Whether or not I succeed, is up to you to decide.)

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been growing orchids for years and usually read books on orchid culture as there’s always new information on how to grow these most intriguing plants. This is different - discussions on how classical writers and folklore saw the twinned tubers, the Victorian writers doing their best not to discuss what those twinned tubers signified (and why lonely male bees are so attracted to shiny flowers) as well as some of the fictions now considered to be weird fictions (Clark Ashton Smith, anyone?)
Well written and consistently entertaining.

[Valeria Lovegood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book for orchid nerds.

[Isabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A complex history of European colonialism as told through the orchid. From legend to Darwin's treatise on Orchids to late 19th century femme fatale, orchids demonstrate the sexual undertones of colonization, collection, and the study of new plants. Revealing a new query of fascination, orchads represented outspoken femininity and quiet observant masculinity. This book encompasses morality, botany, sexuality, colonially, while paying homage to the largest plant family.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly great addition to orchid history by a great master of botanical history at large.
Endersby sets orchid history in all the correct larger historical contexts, adds intrigue and flare by following orchid fiction through the ages, and is funny to boot! I'll be referring back to this book for years to come.

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good deal of fascinating information here.

[Dyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, well researched read!

[Paige]

Orchids are a bit fruity, and this man explains why.

[Aidan · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting overview of the history of orchids, including their cultural evolution. Very interesting stuff!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who grows orchids, I enjoyed this cultural tour. I especially valued learning about how Charles Darwin wrote a book on orchids as a way to overcome the controversy created by his "On the Origin of Species" and used this book to gently lead people beyond their absolute resistance, based on so-called natural theology, or creation by design. The author quotes a private letter from Darwin's friend, Harvard botanist Asa Gray, who congratulated Darwin on the way in which "your beautiful flank-movement with the Orchid-book" was winning over opposing naturalists. Darwin wrote back, "Of all the carpenters for knocking the right nail on the head, you are the very best: no one else has perceived that my chief interest in my orchid book has been that it was a 'flank movement' on the enemy."

I also now have a list of old movies, that used orchids as a dramatic prop, to view.

[Mills College Library]

635.9344 E5658 2016