Now
numbering over 1,600 items, the Horticulture Services Division's
Garden Furnishings and Horticultural Artifacts Collection
spans the period from 1835 to 1955. Hundreds of pieces are
exhibited in the Smithsonian gardens and interior plant
displays in the Smithsonian museums surrounding the National
Mall in Washington, D.C. The Horticulture Services Division
is responsible for maintaining the objects and their supporting
documentation.
The many Smithsonian gardens near the National Mall in Washington,
D.C. offer perfect spaces in which to enjoy the dozens of
historic urns, seats, and fountains
from the Horticulture Services Division's (HSD) Garden Furnishings
Collection that are on public display.
Overview of the Collections
Garden
Furnishings Collection
The Horticulture Services Division's collection currently
includes at least two dozen different seating designs and
more than 35 distinctive motifs on urns and vases. Ornate
cast iron fountains provide grand centerpieces for some
of the Smithsonian gardens.
Horticultural
Artifacts Collection The Horticulture Service Division's historic
collection of seed packets, advertisements, and wire frames
used for funeral arrangements increases an understanding
and appreciation of the horticulture trade's enhancement
of life's everyday and special occasions with flowers and
plants.
Costume
Accessories and Decorative Arts Examples
of antique bouquet and posy holders, table decorations,
shadow boxes, and ornaments reveal how everyday surroundings
were embellished with horticultural details.