To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon University presents rare gems from the original collection of institute founder Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt (1882‱963). The exhibition, “Botany and History Entwined: Rachel Hunt’s Legacy,” is on view through December 15.
Hunt’s early love of nature and books grew into a lifelong pursuit of rare or historical works about plants, gardens and botany. She became fascinated by the people associated with these books and also collected their portraits, letters, manuscripts and original artworks.
Elmhurst, the home and gardens of Rachel and Roy Arthur Hunt (1881‱966) on Ellsworth Avenue in Shadyside in Pittsburgh’s East End, housed her collection of rare books, artwork, antique furniture, tapestries and sculpture and reflected her love of plants and their history.
By the 1950s, Hunt’s collection was widely known for its excellence and was sought by some of the country’s leading universities and botanical centers. Wanting the collection to remain in Pittsburgh, the Hunts decided to donate it and a building to Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) to house both her collection and a campus library.
Beginning with Rachel Hunt’s early interest in books, bookbinding and collecting, the materials on display in this exhibition are divided by subject and reflect her interests in the history of the herbal, the development of gardens and garden plants, the foundation of botany as a science and the botanical discoveries made through travel and exploration. The exhibition concludes with the foundation of the Hunt Botanical Library, its evolution to Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation and descriptions of key aspects of the four departments. A color-illustrated catalog will accompany the exhibition.
The institute is on the fifth floor in the university’s Hunt Library at 4909 Frew Street. For additional information, http://huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu or 412-268-2434.
