The Florist

Coloring books for adults have become immensely popular, but it turns out that the coloring fad is nothing new. In fact, this 18th-century adult coloring book was first published in 1760 for 'The amusement of Ladies and Gentlemen delighting in that art" of color according to nature. Botany was an emerging science and coloring specimens was a good way to recognize flora and fauna and familiarize oneself in a playful way. The Florist was printed in London in 1760 by Robert Sayer to be used with watercolor pigments that his company sold. It contains 60 highly detailed images of flowers, as well as instructions to use for authenticity. The book may have originally been mass-produced in small quantities, but only a few copies remain, two at Yale's Center for British Art and Virginia's Oak Spring Garden Library in the United States.