History of Floral Design Timeline

By Trevor.S.
  • 2800 BCE

    Egyptian

    Egyptian
  • Period: 2800 BCE to 28 BCE

    Egyptians

    Used flowers for decorations,
    garlands, wreaths and temple offerings
    • Utilized simplistic design principles
    – applied a particular pattern several times
    – example: a typical design consisted of a single flower with a single bud or leaf on either side repeated as a unit
  • 600 BCE

    Greeks

    Greeks
  • Period: 600 BCE to 150 BCE

    Greeks

    Used flowers for adornment
    • Continued the use of wreaths and garlands • Created the “Horn of Plenty” or Cornucopia • Are known for creating triangular and symmetrical arrangements
    – consisted of one or a limited amount of colors
  • Period: 431 BCE to 405 BCE

    Peloponnesian War

    The two most powerful city-states in ancient Greece, Athens and Sparta, went to war with each other from 431 to 405 B.C. The Peloponnesian War marked a significant power shift in ancient Greece, favoring Sparta, and also ushered in a period of regional decline that signaled the end of what is considered the Golden Age of Ancient Greece.
  • 28 BCE

    Roman

    Roman
  • Period: 28 BCE to 325

    Romans

    Continued to use the same customs of the Greek period
    – designs of their garlands, wreaths and crowns were more elaborate
    • Used less graceful designs compared to the Greeks in baskets and cornucopias
    • Began the use of flowers for fragrant purposes
  • 320

    Byzantine

    Byzantine
  • Period: 320 to 600

    Byzantine

    Brought together Greek and Roman Period
    influences
    • Began to incorporate fruit within garlands
    • Placed arrangements in baskets, goblets or low containers
    – example: commonly designed trees using foliage and flowers with symmetrical principles in mind
  • 1400

    Renaissance

    Renaissance
  • Period: 1400 to

    Renaissance

    Created large, symmetrical arrangements with bright colors
    Click to return to European
    – more naturalistic look
    • Used flowers for more than religious purposes
    • Introduced the Christmas wreath
  • Period: 1467 to

    Sengoku Jidai

    The Sengoku period (戦国時代, Sengoku Jidai, "Age of Warring States") is a period in Japanese history of near-constant civil war, social upheaval, and political intrigue from 1467 to 1615.

  • Baroque

    Baroque
  • Period: to

    Baroque

    Also referred to as Flemish
    • Created symmetrical designs, then shifted to asymmetrical designs
    Click to return to European
    • Marked the beginning of the Hogarth curve, or S-curve
    – created by English painter, William Hogarth
    • Utilized large containers with elaborate arrangements made with several different types of flowers

  • Early American

    Early American
  • Period: to

    Early American

    • Created arrangements for personal
    Click to return to American
    adornment and decorations around the home
    • Used any flower available and placed all arrangements into household containers

  • Colonial Williamsburg

    Colonial Williamsburg
  • Period: to

    Colonial Williamsburg

    Placed grasses, flowers and foliage into
    fan-shaped arrangements
    • Began to mix different floral bouquets together
  • Period: to

    Revolutionary War

    The Revolutionary War (1775-83), also known as the American Revolution, arose from growing tensions between residents of Great Britain’s 13 North American colonies and the colonial government, which represented the British crown. Skirmishes between British troops and colonial militiamen in Lexington and Concord in April 1775 kicked off the armed conflict, and by the following summer, the rebels were waging a full-scale war for their independence.

  • American Federal

    American Federal
  • Period: to

    American Federal

    Began to focus on the charm of an
    individual flower
    • Strayed away from large amounts of mixed floral bouquets
    • Used fewer flowers in containers

  • Victorian

    Victorian
  • Period: to

    Victorian

    • Used foliage and grasses to contrast textures • Placed flowers in very low containers
  • Period: to

    Opium war

    The Opium Wars were two wars waged between the Qing dynasty and Western powers in the mid-19th century. The First Opium War, fought in 1839–1842 between the Qing and the United Kingdom, was triggered by the dynasty's campaign against the opium trade; the Second Opium War was fought between the Qing and Britain and France, 1856–1860. In each war, the European forces used recently developed military technology to defeat the Qing forces.

  • Anglo Zulu war

    The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the Constitution Act, 1867 for the federation in Canada, by Lord Carnarvon, it was thought that similar political effort, coupled with military campaigns, might succeed with the African kingdoms, tribal areas and Boer republics in South Africa.