Curtis Botanical – Plate 6630 – Queen of Dracaenas / Goldie's Dragon Tree

Original antique black-and-white print from Curtis's Botanical Magazine — Plate 6630.

Named for Hugh Goldie, a Scottish missionary who collected in the Niger Delta region of West Africa in the 1850s-70s. One of the most spectacular foliage plants ever introduced to cultivation — its enormous leaves are a rich green crosshatched with silver and pale green bands, creating a pattern like reptile scales.

Nigerian, Cameroonian, and West African heritage communities in Chicago.

Uncolored plate. Condition consistent with age of volume. Each print is a unique piece of botanical history, printed on paper aged over a century.

This plate originated with the Royal Horticultural Society and passed through Wheldon & Wesley, one of the great natural history dealers of the 20th century. We came into the archive by accident and have spent the time since trying to share it as widely as we can.