This stunningly beautiful book is the first of its kind. Photographer, Robyn Stacey together with essayist, Ashley Hay, have throw open the closed doors of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney herbaria, and the history of Australia's flora.

This stunning book of photographs by Robyn Stacey, one of Australia's greatest photographers, is the first of its kind. Together with essayist, Ashley Hay, they throw open the closed doors of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney herbarium, and reveal the secret history of Australia's flora. Herbarium tells fascinating stories about the nature of collecting, those who collected, what they collected and when, and the scientific background to each of the specimens. A glossary of botanical descriptions provides a unique link between the specimens and their collectors, and exquisite photographs of the botanical specimens - some now extinct - comprise a collection of rare beauty.