340 The Snowdrop. 



other articles of jewellery. The botanical name of Galanthus, 

 literally " Milkflower,'' is derived from gala, milk, and anihos, a 

 flower — quite an appropriate name, and justified by the colour of 

 the blossom, which is not that of snow, but more akin to that 

 of milk, as may be observed if the Snowdrop is seen in the 

 midst of snow. 



History. 



The question of whether the Snowdrop is a plant indigenous 

 to our islands has received some consideration from botanists, 

 but the general opinion is adverse, although Hooker, in the 

 " Student's Flora," says that it is possibly wild in Hertford and 

 Denbigh. It is found, however, practically wild in many places, 

 where it has probably been a survival of old gardens of monastic 

 and other establishments where gardening was in vogue in long 

 past generations. 



It is found in Central and Southern Europe from the 

 Pyrenees to the Caucasus, where it is, to all appearance, a 

 native. The Mediterranean regions, the Bosphorus, and the 

 Black Sea, with Asia Minor, appear to be its headquarters, and 

 it is probably there that we may find its original progenitor has 

 appeared. 



Literature. 



Of course, we cannot tell how long the Snowdrop has been 

 a flower admired by men and women. It has probably been a 

 favourite through all ages, though it is comparatively lately that 

 we have become acquainted with its various forms, and the 

 diversity which exists among them. The earliest known figure of 

 a Snowdrop occurs in a work of L'Obel, named " Stirpium 

 Historia," published in Antwerp in 1576. The figure is that of 

 the common Snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis. The English herbal- 

 ist, Gerarde, uses the same figure in his work of 1597, and 

 supplements it with a larger one, which is supposed to be a draw- 

 ing of either Galanthus Imperati, a large form of Galanthus 

 nivalis, or Galanthus plicatus. In 16 11 Clusius in his "Historia" 

 gave the same figures, and added the information that the large 

 Snowdrop came to Europe by way of Constantinople. It was 

 thus familiar to the authors of herbals and similar works in 

 early days, and we find it spoken of by Evelyn as the " Snow- 

 flower," while it appeared in other old writers as the lesser 

 "Bulbous Violet." 



