3 May – 27 October 2008

Admission free, West Lawn, Museum forecourt

Kew at the British Museum

China Landscape represents a unique partnership between the British Museum and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, celebrating a shared vision to strengthen cultural understanding and support biodiversity conservation across the world.

The landscape is inspired by the collections of the British Museum and Kew. It draws attention to the importance of China and its rich variety of plants and trees, and the value that Chinese people place upon them as cultural symbols and resources in daily life.

Garden Plan

Left image: Wisteria © Christina Harrison/RBG Kew Right image: Ginkgo © Andrew McRobb/RBG Kew

China is home to more than 30,000 plant species. Over the centuries many of these have been brought to other parts of the world, creating a gateway between East and West.

Most of the plants here are native to the mountains of Sichuan province in western China. They have been chosen for their natural beauty and for the active role they play in China’s life and cultural identity. Together with features of a classical Chinese scholar’s garden, they create a Chinese-inspired landscape in the heart of London.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and China

China is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world.

It has a unique flora, packed with plants that provide vital medicine, food and resources. An increasing number of economic and development projects threaten China’s wilderness and ecological richness. With the help of Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank Project a new seed bank is being established in Yunnan province to strengthen China’s conservation and scientific researches.

Kew is also involved in research and collecting expeditions in China, which furthers research into China’s impressive and important flora. To find out more visit, www.kew.org

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