About
Housed in the National Herbarium of Victoria, the State Botanical Collection comprises Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria’s library and archives, and a herbarium collection of over 1.56 million preserved plant, algae and fungi specimens.
The herbarium and library collections were founded by Ferdinand Mueller (1825–1896), who was appointed Government Botanist of the Colony of Victoria in 1853.
The State Botanical Collection is a global scientific, cultural and historical treasure trove, with specimens and books that date back five centuries. It is cared for by a team of dedicated staff and over 60 volunteers who work to make the collection accessible to researchers worldwide, while ensuring it is preserved for use by generations to come.
The library is Australia's most comprehensive botanical library. Its collections include printed material, original artwork, letters and manuscripts, photographs, maps and realia. The library specialises in the fields of plant taxonomy and systematics; horticulture, gardening and landscape design; the exploration of Australia; botanical illustration; the history of botany and horticulture in Australia; and the history of Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria and the National Herbarium of Victoria.
The herbarium collection is an immense archive of botanical information that documents nature’s diversity, underpins conservation and ecological research, and helps us understand how different species respond to environmental change.
The National Herbarium of Victoria sits on Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Country, and houses specimens collected on First Peoples’ lands all across the continent. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of all lands on which specimens in the Herbarium were collected, and pay our respects to Elders past and present. We recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ long history of plant science – of knowing, understanding and naming plants – and acknowledge their ongoing connection to and custodianship of Country.
As the focal point for early Australian botany, the National Herbarium of Victoria received plant specimens and archival material from all over the continent, including from early colonial exploring expeditions. These expeditions relied heavily on Aboriginal people, who acted as guides, collected specimens and shared their knowledge of plants and place. We recognise the colonial history of botanical science in Australia and acknowledge the often-unrecorded contributions of First Peoples to botanical science.
Some specimens and letters in the State Botanical Collection include Indigenous Knowledge, such as Aboriginal Language names for plants and information on plant use by First Peoples. Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria acknowledges our obligation to manage Indigenous Knowledge in line with principles of Indigenous Data Sovereignty (IDS) and Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) rights. We are committed to establishing trusting, equitable and reciprocal relationships with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities whose cultural knowledge is represented in the Collection, and to seeking guidance from communities on how they would like the Indigenous Knowledge associated with herbarium specimens and letters cared for.
