The Lost Orchid: A Story of Victorian Plunder and Obsession

A New Yorker and anEconomistBest Book of the Year

In 1818, a curious root arrived in a small English village, tucked-seemingly by accident-in a packing case mailed from Brazil. The amateur botanist who cultivated it soon realized that he had something remarkable on his hands: an exceptionally rare orchid never before seen on British shores. It arrived just as "orchid mania" was sweeping across Europe and North America, driving a vast plant trade that catered to wealthy private patrons as wel...