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A History of Conservatories
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The concept of displaying and preserving plants as a trophy room for botanical treasures is as old as civilization itself. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, circa 600 B.C., were the most renowned of the ancient exhibitions. The Greeks, Egyptians, Chinese and Japanese were also ancient exhibitors of plants. However the Romans developed this predilection into a science.
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 The historical development of conservatories is unavoidably connected to the progress made in the manufacture of flat glass. There is some evidence that the ancient Romans first attempted to construct buildings that let in light but kept out cold, making use of sheets of mica in place of glass. Unfortunately, this early form of conservatories disappeared with the fall of the Roman Empire.
The British origins of conservatories appear to be based on ideas borrowed from Roman Empire. Early conservatories first appeared during the Victorian Era of 19th century Europe. The cultivation of tropical fruit seems to have been the driving force for conservatories throughout the 18th century. At that time they represented a display of social status in a class system. Through time, people began to consider Conservatories more than just devices for growing fruit. It became customary to remove the wintered plants from the conservatory so that they could be used for social gatherings during the summer months. However conservatories still had limitations to their performance and could not fulfill basic thermal criteria given that glass technology was not yet sufficiently evolved.
It was not until the early 1970's that new developments in materials such as the introduction of float glass, insulating glass, glass coating and construction techniques, made conservatories a practical proposition once again. Suddenly, the role of conservatories changed, being used for everything from exotic spas to exquisite sitting rooms and spacious art studios.
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Photos: Conservatoryinfo
Last review: June, 2004 |
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