Hyacinth, Duke of Wellington

This hand-colored lithograph from E. G. Henderson and Son's The Illustrated Bouquet depicts a potted hyacinth in full bloom, its densely clustered pink flowers arranged in a characteristic spike inflorescence. The artist renders the plant with botanical precision—delicate petal work, striated green leaves, and visible root structure in the terracotta pot—typical of Victorian horticultural illustration. Named after the Duke of Wellington, this cultivar represents the 19th-century obsession with cultivated flower varieties and domestic gardening. The work exemplifies the commercial printmaking tradition that made botanical imagery accessible to middle-class households through bound collections and individual plate sales.