USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection

The introduction of new varieties required exacting representations of the fruit so that plant breeders could accurately document and disseminate their research results. Since the use of scientific photography was not widespread in the late 19th Century, USDA commissioned artists to create watercolor illustrations of newly introduced cultivars. (...)

The exhibit presented here consists of approximately 175 images of fruit watercolors. All of the fruit varieties featured in the exhibit were introduced and described in the Report of the Pomologist between 1886 and 1900.
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