Analytical herbarium : designed for the use of students and private collectors

Analytical Herbarium : Designed for the Use of Students and Private Collectors was published in Farmington, Maine, in 1886 and used to collect botanical samples between May and June 1887.

Although most herbaria were created as unique scrapbooks, this volume was published with dedicated space for botanical specimens and instructions on how to preserve and analyze samples. In the printed introduction, Knowlton observed that the object of the book was to “simplify the analysis of flowers so far as possible, make a record of the analysis, and furnish along with it a neat and convenient herbarium for the preservation of the specimens analyzed. On the left-hand page, the flower is named and analyzed by the collector, while upon the right-hand page, the flower, after having been pressed and dried, is carefully mounted.”

The volume also included space for an index, which an unknown creator filled in with both the common and scientific names of specimens. This person began mounting specimens on the last right-hand page of the volume and worked backwards, according to Knowlton’s instructions. The left-hand analytical pages included spaces to record the specimen’s scientific name, common name, locality, collection date, and information regarding its structure, means of reproduction, and fruit. The user of this book filled out this information for all but the last three specimens. The first page was dated June 1887 and included an orchid found in Farmington, Maine. This user noted that specimens were found in moist meadows, rich hilly woods, wet bogs, rocky ground, and grassy places.

The volume features a three-quarter binding with grey cloth covers and gilt-edged red cloth corners and spine. The word “HERBARIUM.” is gilt-stamped on the front cover and the spine features 7 gold bands. An envelope is pasted into the inside of the front cover which contains several small strips of gummed paper that were used to secure specimens throughout the volume. The title page reads Analytical Herbarium. Designed for the use of Students and Private Collectors. Farmington, ME.: D.H. Knowlton, Publisher. 1886. The volume contains 60 leaves of unlined wove paper.