Natural History in the Royal Library
Our changing relationship with the natural world, from Tudor to Victorian times
Ruralia Commoda
c.1490-5RCIN 1057436
This book, written around 1305, provides an overview of medieval agriculture and gives instructions to its readers on how to plant a garden. It became one of the first bestsellers in history, going through multiple editions, and was published in several different languages. This copy, printed in the 1490s, was once in the library of Henry VIII at Whitehall Palace in London.