Visit Kew's plant artefact collection
Visit the Plants + People exhibition located in Museum No.1 and see items from Kew's collection of historic plant artefacts.
Museum No.1 at Kew Gardens displays artefacts from the Economic Botany Collection
A selection of plant artefacts from Kew’s Economic Botany Collection can be seen in Museum No. 1, as part of the Plants + People exhibition.
Plants + People
Items are displayed in cabinets under themes such as ‘Healing plants’, ‘Sugar and spice’, ‘Plants for energy’ and ‘To dye for’.
Exhibits include a portion of a wreath made of the blue waterlily (Nymphaea caerulea), from the coffin of the Egyptian Pharoah Rameses II (c. 1200–1100 BC); apparatus for smoking opium from Hong Kong donated in 1881; a collection of elephants fashioned from different Sri Lankan woods; and a set of rubber dentures.
Visit information
- Entry - Free with Garden admission
- Location - Museum No.1, opposite the Palm House near the Victoria Gate entrance
- Map - Download a map of the Gardens (pdf)
Education and training
Kew's Economic Botany Collection is also available for study and research. Behind-the-scenes tours of the Collection store can be pre-booked for groups with special interests, and the Sustainable Uses Group has an active internship programme, hosting some 50 interns since 1999.
Tours typically include university students (usually postgraduate) of biology or art, adult learners of crafts such as basketry or wood-carving, groups of volunteers from sister organisations, societies of historians or craftspeople, and academic conference excursions.
Donate now
By giving a donation today you can help us look after our treasures and collections of national importance. Over two and a half centuries, Kew’s passion for art and architecture and pursuit of knowledge about plants and the natural world has endowed us with an extraordinary legacy - our unparalleled collection of botanical resources and historical treasures. Find out more about where your money goes.
Give now and help Kew look after our art collections and heritage.
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