Rare publications about botany are part of an exhibition of books at Trinity College Dublin.
Trinity College Dublin is home to four million books. The Long Room alone houses 200,000 books.
30 rare publications on botany form part of this exhibition.
The exhibition includes one of the earliest printed works on herbs and medical applications in the 14th century and Ireland's first printed catalogue on seeds. The star of the show is a piece collected and signed by the great naturalist Charles Darwin.
Also on display are a selection of books from the 18th century Fagel Collection. The entire Fagel Collection comprises 20,000 rare books and was acquired by Trinity College in 1802 at a cost of £8,000. Keeper of Early Prints at Trinity College, Dr Charles Benson, says that one book from the collection would now fetch around a million euro on the open market.
It's old, it's rare and it is very richly decorated.
The exhibition runs until the end of the year and also features a selection of contemporary works.
It's a rare opportunity to see some rare works which are unlikely to go on public display again for twenty years.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 5 September 2008. The reporter is Martina Fitzgerald.
