Saving the Dodo describes how the energy, expertise and money of the two Duncan brothers shaped the future of Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum and Bath’s Royal Literary & Scientific Institution at a critical time in the nineteenth century.
The Duncans were quick to apply the latest scientific ideas, with museum displays organised according to the systems for classifying plants and animals developed by Linnaeus and Cuvier. Dr Jon Whiteley, former curator at the Ashmolean, discusses how they saved a museum that had lost its purpose and was facing collapse. The many other philanthropic acts of the brothers and their historical context are also explored.
This account has been compiled from a conversation between Dr Jon Whiteley and Professor Julian Vincent, with additional material by Elizabeth Vincent.
Paperback (24 pages)
ISBN 978-0-9544941-8-6
Price £5