The library of the Miramare Castle reveals for the first time its treasure chest of books on botany, flowers, plants and gardens. The rich collection, steeped in the spirit of the nineteenth century, is reflected in the living garden surrounding the castle. A creation at once natural, artificial and artistic, the garden of archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Habsburg and his consort Charlotte of Belgium embodies an ideal of perfection, beauty and relationship with nature. The botanical library is a garden on paper that guides along a path of dreams and meditations born in a cultivated, aristocratic salon of the nineteenth century.

Contents

The library

Maximilian botanist

Charlotte and botany

Botanical art

Books and gardens

The blossoming castle

Soul of the garden

Selected bibliography

Short catalogue raisonné

Index of library books on botany and gardens