Specimen Florae Britannia

This delicate botanical sculpture was commissioned in 2019 to celebrate 325 years since the Bank of England was established. Smith used genuine Bank of England £50 notes that had been marked for destruction, to create a bouquet of wild British plants and flowers.

The stems are made of real twigs which the artist collected from Battersea Common. The bouquet is held in a silver water jug made in 1694, the year the Bank of England was established.

The jug, which is part of the Bank of England's permanent collection, was once used in the Bank's formal rooms (known as the Parlours).

Image copyright of Justine Smith.

Text copyright of Bank of England.