Koninklijke Nederlandsche Maatschappij tot Aanmoediging van den Tuinbouw te Leiden 1848 - 1863

This medal was made by David van der Kellen, probably in the mid-19th century. It commemorates the Royal Dutch Horticultural Society in Leiden. But why such an organization, and why memorialize it in this way? Well, the Netherlands has a long and interesting history of cultivating plants for scientific study and economic gain. The early modern tulip craze is just one example. By the 19th century, horticulture was seen as a source of national pride, and organizations like this one in Leiden helped to promote that industry. They were also linked to developments in botany and other sciences at the nearby University of Leiden. The images here, with flourishing cultivated plants, invoke the notion of progress through science and art, as well as Dutch power and prosperity. For an art historian, studying something like this, it's important to understand the social and economic conditions that made it possible, as well as its place in the longer history of Dutch scientific and artistic achievement.