This radish fell out of the donor’s insulated lunch bag which she carried back and forth to work each day. This specimen was intended to be part of a nutritious lunch, but because of mishandling, it tumbled into a dark corner of the bag, where it lay undisturbed, drying and withering. She saw that it had potential to be a found dry-food object, and allowed it to dry further before submitting the specimen to the museum.

Museum staff initially turned the item down, even sending the donor a letter of rejection, stating that the donor had intentionally allowed the item to dehydrate. The item remained in the museum’s possession and is a rare, fine specimen. Museum staff reconsidered, and decided to instate the shriveled radish into its collection.

The Brassicaceae (also known as cruciferous) plants include broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, turnips, and horseradish. Cruciferous plants get that name due to their four-petaled cross-shaped blossoms. The remnants of the radish’s taproot are visible on the left side of this photo.  NEXT >

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