La Rose Impériale: Exhibition at The Huntington Until April 28, 2008 {Scented Paths & Fragrant Addresses} {Rose Notebook}
The Huntington in San Marino, California is organizing an exhibition about the historical role Joséphine de Beauharnais played in developing the cultivation of modern roses in Europe through her passion for them. It is titled La Rose Impériale: The Development of Modern Roses. The show takes place as part of the 100th anniversary of the rose garden at The Huntington. Rose lovers will be able to see these:
“ ...110 rare illustrated herbals and rose books, including a first edition of Pierre-Joseph Redouté’s glorious multivolume work, Les Roses (1817-24)......
(Image is from from Redouté's album)
Perfume lovers have not been left out and part of the exhibition offers insights into aromas,
"And since no exhibition about roses would be complete without fragrance, an interactive display will allow visitors to sample rare rose oils from Bulgaria, Morocco, and Turkey. These will be accompanied by an early work on the development of perfumes, Simon Barbe’s Parfumeur françois (1696). A video presentation on how new roses are produced by contemporary plant breeders will round out the exhibition."
You can also read this post on a French book about rose mania in Europe at the time of Joséphine
