Skip to Content

15 Free Mushroom Charts And Mushroom Illustrations To Print

Enhance your space with 15 stunning vintage mushroom charts and illustrations. Free downloads of detailed mushroom art make these perfect for decor, nature study, or unique gift ideas for mushroom lovers.

I was inspired to curate this wonderful collection of vintage mushroom charts and mushroom drawings from a recent trip to London.

I love wandering around interior shops, and the other day, I was in the H&M home flagship store in London when I spotted a dinner service with printed mushroom illustrations design.

H&M Mushroom plate

Vintage Natural History Mushroom Charts & Drawings

Did you know that the entire organism is actually known as fungi, and the mushroom is the fruit of fungi? Therefore, all mushrooms are fungi, but not all fungi produce mushrooms.

The terms “mushroom” and “toadstool” go back centuries and were never precisely defined, nor was there a consensus on their application.

Whatever you call them mushrooms, fungi, or toadstools, these vintage illustrations are lovely. They look great framed in any kitchen, especially in homes with a more country cottage or farmhouse vibe.

If you want a super cute idea for a fun way to display these vintage mushroom illustrations, you should check out these whimsical fabric mushrooms.

To download your higher-resolution mushroom image, click the title above the print you want.

mushroom charts

The Mushroom Charts and Mushroom Art

1. Adolphe Millot “Champignon” – Mushroom Chart

This is a beautiful vintage mushroom chart with over 69 individual illustrations by the fabulous French naturalist artist Adolphe Millot.

This chart is from the French encyclopedia “Nouveau Larousse illustré“.

A key is at the bottom of the mushroom chart, naming each species. Also, each mushroom illustration is assigned one of the four letters:

  1. C for comestibles – edible mushrooms
  2. V vénéneux – poisonous mushrooms
  3. S for suspect – Suspect mushrooms
  4. I for indifferent – Indifferent

There are more Adolphe Millots botanical posters on Pictureboxblue and his fruit and vegetable posters too.

Adolphe Millot Mushroom chart

2. Adolphe Millot – Second Mushroom Chart

Another mushroom poster from Adolphe Millot. This one is from the book “Illustrations for Le Larousse Pour Tous“.

Each mushroom is named individually and assigned with one of the same letters from the other Adolphe mushroom chart above.

Mushroom botanical poster

3. 1886 Mushroom Illustrations

This mushroom chart is from an 1886 Botanical Atlas by the Italian botanist Giovanni Briosi.

In this chart, they look like edible mushrooms; however, I wouldn’t want to risk them.

There are many folk traditions about the defining features of a poisonous mushroom, from how they look in both shape and colour to whether they turn rice red once boiled or even blacken silver.

Poisonous mushrooms have no general identifiers, so such traditions are unreliable. Guidelines to identify particular mushrooms exist and will work only if you are an expert in identifying toxic mushrooms.

Mushroom drawings

4. Another 1886 Mushroom Poster

Another group of mushroom drawings from the same book as above. This mushroom chart is more colourful.

mushroom poster

5. 1889 Mushroom Chart

This mushroom illustration is from the 1889 German illustrated encyclopedia “Meyers Konversationslexikon.”

The German text at the top of the chart translates as “mushrooms the description of the species itself under the preceding names.”

There is a species of mushroom that, if cooked in a certain way, tastes just like fried chicken. It is known as “the chicken of the woods” and is found all over the world.

1889 mushroom drawings

6. Edible Fungi -1908

This collection of fungi illustrations is from the 1908 edition of “The Americana; a universal reference library, comprising the arts and sciences, literature, history, biography, geography, commerce, etc., of the world.

Edible fungi print

7. English Mushrooms 1797

This wonderfully illustrated and drawn of English mushrooms is from the book “Coloured Figures of English Fungi or Mushrooms“. By the English naturalist and illustrator James Sowerby.

This particular mushroom is Armillaria mellea, also known as a Honey Fungus. It is edible, but some people can be intolerant of it. The fungi tend to grow at the root of trees and plants.

Many more of James Sowerby Mushroom prints can be found here.

English mushrooms illustration

8. 1797 – Coprinellus disseminatus Mushrooms

Another illustration from Sowerby’s book is of the edible Coprinellus disseminatus (fairy inkcap) mushrooms.

Fairy inkcaps

9. 1797 – Coprinopsis picacea fungi

This is another one of Sowerby’s British fungi illustrations. It is the poisonous fungus Coprinopsis panacea, also called the magpie fungus.

Magpie fungus

10. 1797 – Amethyst Deceiver-

Another British mushroom illustration by Sowerby. The amethyst deceiver is an edible but not particularly tasty mushroom.

Even though the mushroom is edible it can absorb toxins from the soil it grows in.

Amethyst deceiver mushroom

11. 1847 – British Toadstool

This is an almost fairytale-like print of British toadstools. The artwork is by Anna Maria Hussey and is from the book Illustrations of British Mycology.

Arguably the most iconic toadstool species, the fly agaric is a large white-gilled, white-spotted, usually red mushroom, and is one of the most recognizable and widely encountered in popular culture“.

toadstool

12. 1847 – Russula emetica

Another wonderful mushroom painting by Anna Maria Hussey. This beautiful-looking mushroom is often referred to as the sickener.

This is due to the unfortunate effect the mushroom can have on the stomach when eaten raw. However, if parboiled or pickled, the toxicity of this mushroom can be removed.

Mushroom sickener

13. Mushroom Plant Art Print

A mushroom plant art print from Martin Gerlach’s The Plant in Arts and Craft 1886.

Mushrooms, larch yew lithographic print

14. Charlotte Younge’s British Mushrooms

This beautiful illustration of British fungi is from her vintage fruit and vegetable illustrations collection.

British fungi by Charlotte Yonge

Print 15: Oken’s Mushrooms 1

This is one of four mushroom posters by Lorenz Oken from his 1846 book 1 Abbildungen zu Okens Allgemeiner Naturgeschichte. The other three are included in this collection of Oken’s vintage botanical prints.

A vintage chart of various fungi and mushrooms

Other Collections

If you fancy having a go at mushroom illustration, check out this easy guide on drawing mushrooms.

If you enjoyed these mushroom charts, you might want to check out the blog’s other wonderful vintage botanical images and other educational posters, including these vintage vegetable prints.

mushroom illustrations

If you fancy, you can Buy Me A Coffee Here.

Marie

Tuesday 28th of September 2021

Thank you for sharing. I stumbled on your site - such beautiful images.

claire

Tuesday 28th of September 2021

Thank you, watch this space as the collection will just continue to grow. Lots more wonderful images to come.

Cecilia

Monday 30th of September 2019

Lovely collection, Claire! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!

claire

Monday 30th of September 2019

Thank you so much

Ann

Monday 30th of September 2019

Beautiful and informative! Thank you for sharing at Party In Your PJ's.

claire

Monday 30th of September 2019

Thank you I love to give a little titbit of info with the pictures.

Julie Briones

Saturday 28th of September 2019

These prints are lovely, Claire! And I didn't know that about mushrooms and fungi. Very interesting!

claire

Sunday 29th of September 2019

Thank you, and glad you learned something new.