Botanical gardens brought together in a single space the great diversity of the earth's flora. They displaced nature from forest and foothill and re-arranged it to reveal something of the scientific principles underpinning the apparent chaos of the wild. Nature Displaced, Nature Displayed shows how the design and display of such gardens was not determined by scientific principles alone. Through a study of three botanical gardens - belonging to the University of Cambridge, the Royal Dublin Society, and the Belfast Natural History Society - the author shows how the final outcome involved a complex interplay of ideas about place, identity, empire, botanical science, and especially aesthetics, creating spaces that would educate the mind as well as please the senses. This highly engaging book offers a wealth of fresh insights into both the history and development of botanical gardens as well as connections between science and aesthetics.

List of FiguresAcknowledgements 1: Nature, Botanical Gardens and Science 2: Foundations 3: Displaying and Displacing Nature: Order, Classification and Pleasure 4: Glass, Iron and Steam: Botanical Buildings and the Cultivation of the Exotic 5: Networks and Exchanges: Knowledge Transfer and Peopling Botanical Institutions 6: Popular Science, Public Pleasure and the Botanical Garden as a Site of Education and Entertainment 7: ConclusionNotesBibliography Index