[5] The herbarium was established in 1853 by Ferdinand von Mueller, the Government Botanist for Victoria, and is situated within the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne.

The present building was constructed in 1934 through a donation from philanthropist Sir Macpherson Robertson.

It, along with a 1989 extension, houses the entire collection of 1.5 million plant and fungal specimens.

The Herbarium's botanic library is an important source for the history of Australian botany, and has contributed some 124 volumes (of the 1212 volumes contributed by Australia Institutions) to the online digital Biodiversity Heritage Library.

[2] The herbarium also publishes an online key together with descriptions of plants found in Victoria via VicFlora.