Eight Buildings, Eight Gardens — World Landmarks as Botanical Archive Plates

In the great natural history collections of the 18th and 19th centuries, nothing was exempt from the scientist's attention. Rocks, plants, insects, bones, shells — and buildings. Architecture was studied alongside botany, understood as an expression of landscape, climate and culture rather than a thing apart from the natural world. The architectural archive plate — building as specimen, structure surrounded by the plants of its environment — is one of the most beautiful and least known forms in the history of scientific illustration.

The 98types Architectural Archive revives it. Eight world landmarks — Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, the Pyramids of Giza, the Colosseum, the Statue of Liberty, Christ the Redeemer and the Leaning Tower of Pisa — rendered as botanical archive specimens, each surrounded by plants drawn from its geographic, cultural and historical environment.

Original designs, printed in England at Camden Market, on 260gsm museum-grade archival matte paper. From £3. Buy 3 get 1 free.

The Idea — Architecture as Natural History

The concept behind the Architectural Archive is simple and, once seen, obvious: a building is as much a product of its environment as any animal or plant. The Pyramids of Giza belong to the Nile delta; the Eiffel Tower belongs to the banks of the Seine; Big Ben belongs to the Thames. Strip away the botanical companions that grew around these structures, and something is missing.

Each plate in the Architectural Archive restores that connection. The landmark is documented with the discipline of a natural history illustration — Latin-style title, structural labels, architectural field notes — and surrounded by botanical specimens chosen for their geographic, cultural or symbolic relationship to the building. The result is something between a travel print and a scientific archive, between a souvenir and a piece of scholarship.

Plate by Plate — The Eight Landmarks

Plate 22 — Big Ben & The Palace of Westminster

The Great Bell has kept time since 1859. The Elizabeth Tower — the correct name for the clock tower, adopted in 2012 — rises in the Gothic Revival style alongside the Thames, one of the defining images of London and of Britain. The Victorian restorer Charles Barry and the architect Augustus Pugin designed the Palace of Westminster as it stands today after the fire of 1834.

The botanical companions are entirely British: Cabbage Rose (Rosa centifolia), Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus), Primrose (Primula vulgaris) and Columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris) — the wildflowers and cottage garden plants of the English landscape. The London note reads: time, stone and flower beds meet in the visual language of the old city.

This print is the only London landmark in the collection and is produced in London — at Camden Market, NW1 — making it the only London landmark print that is also literally a London product. The natural choice for anyone who loves the city, or wants to give something that means something to someone who does.

Plate 21 — La Tour Eiffel (The Eiffel Tower)

When the Eiffel Tower was completed for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, it was called monstrous by the Parisian establishment. Within a generation, it had become the most visited paid monument in the world. Gustave Eiffel's iron lattice — 18,038 individual parts, 2.5 million rivets — achieves its lightness through openness: the wind passes through it rather than being resisted.

The botanical companions are French: Bearded Iris (Iris germanica, the source of the fleur-de-lis), Gallica Rose (Rosa gallica, the French rose), Corn Poppy, Lavender and Peony. The Paris note: iron transformed into monumental lacework against the sky.

Plate 23 — The Taj Mahal

Shah Jahan began construction of the Taj Mahal in 1632 as a mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. It took 20,000 workers approximately 20 years to complete. Its defining principle is symmetry — the main dome, the four minarets, the reflecting pool and the formal charbagh garden all arranged along a single axis.

The botanical companions come from the Mughal garden tradition: Damask Rose (Rosa damascena), Common Jasmine (Jasminum officinale), Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera), Marigold and Pomegranate — the plants of the great Mughal gardens that surrounded the complex when it was built. The archive note: architecture designed together with water, pathways, trees and flowers.

Plate 24 — The Pyramids of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Khufu was completed around 2560 BCE and remained the tallest man-made structure on earth for 3,800 years. It is the only surviving structure of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The mechanics of its construction — how 2.3 million limestone blocks, averaging 2.5 tonnes each, were cut, transported and positioned — remain the subject of serious academic debate.

The botanical companions are drawn from ancient Egyptian culture: Nymphaea caerulea (the Blue Water Lily, one of the most sacred plants in ancient Egyptian religion and among the most frequently depicted in Egyptian art), Cyperus papyrus (the plant from which papyrus writing material was made), Sacred Lotus, Damask Rose and Bearded Iris. The field note: monument, landscape and sky formed part of a larger sacred environment.

Plate 27 — The Colosseum, Rome

The Flavian Amphitheatre — known as the Colosseum since the medieval period — was begun under Emperor Vespasian and inaugurated under Titus in 80 CE with 100 days of games. It seated between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators. Its architectural achievement is the standardised system of arches, vaults and piers — a solution so efficient that Roman engineers repeated it across the empire.

The botanical companions are from the classical Mediterranean: Gallica Rose, Acanthus mollis (whose distinctive leaf was absorbed into Greek and Roman architectural ornament and appears throughout the Colosseum's decorative programme), Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis), Bearded Iris and Corn Poppy. The archive note: arch, vault and repeated arcade — the building's monumental rhythm.

Plate 20 — The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Construction began in 1173. The ground on one side was softer than the other, and the tilt became apparent within decades. Construction was halted twice over nearly 200 years. When it was finally completed in the 14th century, the lean was already famous. Engineers in the 1990s stabilised it at approximately 4 degrees — the imperfection that made it the most photographed building in Italy.

The botanical companions reference the Tuscan landscape: Gallica Rose, Olive Tree (Olea europaea), Lavender, Carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus) and Bearded Iris. The architect's note: a tower made famous by beauty, engineering and persistent inclination.

Plate 25 — The Statue of Liberty

Designed by the sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi with an interior iron framework engineered by Gustave Eiffel (who would later build the tower in Paris), the Statue of Liberty was a gift from France, dedicated on 28 October 1886. Its copper exterior has oxidised over 140 years to the characteristic verdigris green that is now inseparable from its image.

The botanical companions cross the Atlantic: Rosa gallica (connecting the statue to its French origin), Pale Iris, Madonna Lily, Edelweiss and Corn Poppy. The plate note: the official name is Liberty Enlightening the World. A torch held aloft turns architecture into a gesture of welcome.

Plate 26 — Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro

Art Deco in style and monumental in scale — 30 metres tall, arms spanning 28 metres — Christ the Redeemer was completed in 1931 atop the 700-metre Corcovado mountain. It was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. At the time of its dedication, it was one of the largest sculptures ever completed.

The botanical companions are from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest: Passiflora incarnata (Passionflower, with its traditional associations with the Passion of Christ), Blue Passionflower, Heliconia (Hanging Lobster Claw), Princess Flower (Tibouchina urvilleana) and tropical Orchids. The Rio note: sculpture rises above forest, granite and cloud. The open arms create the monument's unmistakable silhouette.

How to Use the Architectural Archive

The eight plates work both as individual prints and as a collection. Here are three arrangements that work well in UK interiors.

The European capitals wall: Big Ben, Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Colosseum — four prints, four countries, the entire span of European architecture from classical Rome to Victorian Gothic. In A4, hung as a quad in matching black frames, this is a genuinely beautiful gallery wall for a living room, hallway or study. With the buy 3 get 1 free offer, all four from £9.

The world wonders collection: all eight prints in A5 across a large wall or staircase — the full global span of the collection from Egypt to Brazil, from Rome to Tokyo, all rendered in the same visual language and therefore coherent as a whole. The dark academia scholar's study with a world passport.

The meaningful single print: the city that matters. Where they got married. Where they studied. Where they went on honeymoon. Where they grew up. The Big Ben print for someone who loves London. The Eiffel Tower for someone who met in Paris. The Taj Mahal for someone who honeymooned in India. These are the prints that get chosen as gifts because they mean something specific to the person they are for.

Who These Prints Are For

The Architectural Archive sits at the intersection of several distinct audiences, which is what makes it unusual. Travellers want prints of places they have visited or love. Architecture students and professionals want buildings rendered with scholarly dignity. Dark academia enthusiasts want the herbarium aesthetic applied to buildings as well as bodies and animals. History enthusiasts want the context — the date, the architect, the political circumstances — that these plates provide through their field notes. And gift buyers want something that looks beautiful, means something specific, and arrives quickly.

At 98types, the buy 3 get 1 free offer means a set of four architectural prints — four countries, four continents, four eras — costs from £9. Printed in England at Camden Market. Delivered first class, same day for orders before 3pm.

Browse the Architectural Archive collection →

Also in the 98types Anatomical Archive: Human Anatomy Prints · Zoological Animal Prints · Full Archive Collection