This is a sample visual essay demonstrating a few key features of a Visual Essay. Additional Documentation and examples are available for reference. Information about image interactions can be found here.
Hyacinthus orientalis is a garden ornamental distinguish by its columnar spike of waxy flowers. Much of the hyacinth’s story, however, actually revolves around its bulb. Reconstructing this narrative reveals how the hyacinth bulb contributed to the plant’s survival in its native range over millennia, enabled its mobility in trade networks under the Ottoman Empire, and culminated in its use for forcing indoors at the French court from the mid-1740s. Today, this story can also raise awareness of the environmental impact of the Dutch flower bulb trade and the need for sustainable solutions in modern flower gardening.1
The work has been in the collection of the Mauritshuis in The Hague since 1902 and has been the subject of various literary treatments. In 2006, the Dutch public selected it as the most beautiful painting in the Netherlands.
The Frick Collection in New York City has four paintings by Vermeer. Unlike Girl with a Pearl Earring, the Frick Vermeers are genre scenes. In addition to these paintings by Vermeer, the Frick Collection has works by Frans Hals, Rembrandt, and Meyndert Hobbema.
Multiple viewers may be defined for a single paragraph of text. The first viewer defined is displayed as the default viewer.
Others are selectable using icons displayed in the top right margin of the paragraph.