Juliet Anderson, Cambridge University Herbarium
The Cambridge Herbarium holds around 1.1 million plant specimens, representing over 300 years of botanical history. This includes the collections of famous natural scientists such as Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, but also those of other key botanists that may be less familiar.
In this talk, come and learn about the history of some of the wonders hidden away in the Herbarium. Whether that be plants which are now extinct in the wild, Victorian teaching resources or gorgeous botanical illustrations, there are a wealth of plant-related treasures to explore.
We will also touch on how these historically important specimens are currently being mobilized via digitization to make them more accessible. We will look at what kind of research these collections can inspire, to understand how this material can still be used to answer key science and humanities questions today.
Science on Sundays
A programme of free, informal, monthly science talks bringing the latest discoveries in plant science, as well as research linked to the plant collection at CUBG to our visitors in a 30 minute nutshell.
We will be running these talks live from the Botanic Garden Classroom for those visiting the Garden on the day.
Free with normal Garden admission.
Please check the website and social media for updates.
Suitable for adults and children aged 12+.
Talks run monthly March to August.
