Framing botanical pages from antique books is something we see a lot of at Underglass and we love it every time. There is something quietly personal about it. Someone’s taste, someone’s curiosity, someone’s love of the natural world, all of it right there on one page, pulled from a book that was made to be studied and admired and somehow found its way to our Castro shop.
This yellow botanical came from B. Maund’s The Botanist, a 19th century publication with one of the best title page descriptions we have come across. It promises accurately coloured figures of ornamental plants with descriptions intended to convey both moral and intellectual gratification. That is a publication that takes its subject seriously, and the drawings inside live up to it.
Letting the drawing lead
With a piece like this the instinct is sometimes to add too much, a float, a bold frame, something to announce that this is something special. We went the other way.
The drawing is a single flower on a book page, centered and complete. It does not need help drawing attention to itself. So we centered it, gave it room, and built the framing around the qualities already present in the page rather than adding new ones.
No float. Just the drawing, given the space it needs.
The mat: heavy linen fabric with a beveled opening
We chose a heavy linen earth tone fabric wrapped mat with a beveled window opening. The linen texture brings a warmth and a tactile quality that connects beautifully to the botanical subject matter – there is something of the same natural, organic world in both the fabric and the drawing. The beveled opening catches the light and gives the transition from mat to artwork a clean, considered edge that adds a quiet elegance to the piece.
Fabric mats are one of those choices that elevate a framing design without announcing themselves. You notice the warmth before you notice the material.
The frame: scalloped antique muted silver
For the frame we chose a scalloped antique muted silver profile. The repeating scallop design adds movement and a period-appropriate detail that suits a 19th century botanical illustration perfectly, while the muted, aged silver tone keeps everything from feeling too precious or too formal. It is a frame that has a little history in it, which feels right for a drawing that does too.
The frame adds just enough presence around the piece without ever competing with the flower at the center of it.
Museum glass throughout
We finished the piece with museum glass, 99% UV filtered and with an anti-reflective coating that reduces glare to virtually nothing. For a page from an antique book, UV protection is not optional: paper this old is sensitive to light damage and the colors in a hand-colored botanical illustration will shift and fade without proper glazing. Museum glass keeps the piece looking exactly as it does today for the years ahead.
Bring us your botanical pages and antique prints
If you have botanical drawings, antique book pages, vintage prints or illustrations you want properly framed, come in and let us take a look. This is exactly the kind of project we enjoy most and we will take good care of whatever you bring in.
And right now is a particularly good time to come in as we are offering 20% off all custom picture framing. Call our store for details and restrictions about this offer.
📍 Visit our Castro frame shop 📞 Call us 📧 Email us your artwork 💻 Request a quote on our website
Underglass Custom Picture Framing · Castro District · San Francisco Custom design · Conservation framing · Open 7 days
