Collecting Botanicals

John Tradescant, gardener to the earl of Salisbury and to James I, became a botanical collector and publicly displayed his collections in his museum, "the Ark," in South Lambeth. This catalogue lists over one hundred people who gave him plants or objects. In addition to "seeds, gums, roots, woods, and divers ingredients medicinal," there were articles of curious clothing, ornaments, and utensils, including what was described as Powhatan's "habit all embroidered with shells."

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