A LARGE collection of artwork by renowned botanical artist Lilian Snelling has been returned to Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RGBE).
The re-discovered work was identified by Cornish booksellers Tim and Kate Loe during an auction.
Tim Loe contacted RBGE rather than listing the art on the open market.
Lorna Mitchell, head of library services at RBGE, said: "We were incredibly grateful that Tim reached out to us, allowing us to return these long-lost pieces to our collection.
“If they had gone on the open market, the chances of us being able to purchase them would have been slim.
"Once they were clearly identified as Snelling’s, a whole new level of interest would have driven up their value."
Snelling’s pieces were first created at the garden where she once worked between 1917 and 1921.
Her work consisted of beautiful, varied pieces of newly discovered plants, however, many of her pieces went missing over time.
The garden owns more than 500 pieces of the artist's work, but experts say some are still missing.
Tim Loe, owner of Loe Books in Cornwall, said: "Some of the pieces were labelled only with 'LS', which initially made their attribution uncertain.
“However, as soon as I saw the quality of the work, everything fell into place, and I knew I had to do everything in my power to acquire it."
RBGE is working to make its collections more accessible and the recent discovery of Snelling’s work has now been digitised online for all to see.
Mitchell added: "To date, we’ve listed about 8500 individual artworks in our digital collection. As we list them, they are photographed, which means we can share them more widely.
“Not everyone can visit Edinburgh, so being able to offer digital access is a key way to open up these incredible pieces to a global audience."
