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This electronic thesis or dissertation has been downloaded from the King’s Research Portal at https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/ Collecting, curating and the construction of zoological knowledge Walter Rothschild’s zoological enterprise, c. 1878-1937 Larsson, Elle Awarding institution: King's College London The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without proper acknowledgement. END USER LICENCE AGREEMENT Unless another licence is stated on the immediately following page this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the work Under the following conditions: Attribution: You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). Non Commercial: You may not use this work for commercial purposes. No Derivative Works - You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work. Any of these conditions can be waived if you receive permission from the author. Your fair dealings and other rights are in no way affected by the above. Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 05. Oct. 2021 Collecting, Curating and the Construction of Zoological Knowledge: Walter Rothschild’s Zoological Enterprise, c. 1878-1937. Eleanor Julie Larsson A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, King’s College London, September 2019 Abstract Late-Victorian banker and private collector Lionel Walter Rothschild (1868-1937) dedicated his life to the study of zoology. Often dismissed by historians as an ‘eccentric amateur’, he engaged in a wide range of zoological activities, which this thesis defines as an ‘enterprise’: he collected and studied huge quantities of zoological material, created a museum in which to house and display it for the benefit of researchers and visiting publics, and started his own zoological journal for disseminating the research that he, his museum curators and other zoologists performed. This thesis departs from recent historical literature, which tends to compartmentalise the investigation of collecting, museums, journals and zoological research, to explore their historical co-development. It demonstrates the multiple connections between these activities that together constituted museum-based zoological knowledge and practice in late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century Britain. In exploring their intersections and synergies, it presents new and fruitful insights into the history of natural history, and establishes Rothschild as a far more significant contributor to this field than historians have previously realised. Standard historical narratives present this period as a time of professionalisation within the British life sciences, emphasising the emergence of specialist, professional and experimental biologists who occupied the growing number of paid positions within laboratories, universities and government departments. These narratives have however neglected to give critical attention to those who, like Rothschild, remained outside of the professional establishment in this period. In contrast, this thesis illustrates his importance, and that of the diverse cast of individuals involved in the world of natural history. It argues that only by examining the totality of the zoological enterprise and the multiple intersections between its practices, institutions, publications and personalities, can the historical significance of such individuals be revealed and understood. 1 Acknowledgements First and foremost, I wish to thank my lead supervisor, Professor Abigail Woods, for her expertise, guidance and continued support throughout the writing of this thesis. It has benefited infinitely from her frequent, insightful and constructive feedback. I would also like to thank my second supervisor, Dr Adelene Buckland, for her ongoing encouragement and enthusiasm, as well as her insightful comments and suggestions. I will be forever grateful for her extra words of reassurance in the weeks leading up to submission. And finally, also to Dr Robert Prŷs-Jones, who, as my partner organisation supervisor, has been a mine of information on all things ornithological and Rothschild. His support has been invaluable for navigating the scientific side of the project. For their assistance with archival research I would like to pay special thanks to the Library and Archives team at the Natural History Museum, especially to Laura Brown and Alison Harding, together with Ruth Benny, Paul Cooper, Hellen Pethers and Sarah Sworder. My thanks also go to ZSL archivist Sarah Broadhurst, Quex Park Museum archivist Hazel Basford and Catherine Taylor, Head Archivist of The Waddesdon Archive, Windmill Hill. For conversations and encouragement throughout my research I would like to thank Melanie Aspey, Director of the Rothschild Archive, Tim Amsden and Richard Tregoning of Tring Local History Society, John Tennant for his advice and insight into all things Meek, as well as Lisa Cardy, Andrea Hart and Eileen Cox of the Natural History Museum. I would also like to thank Julie Harvey, who was key to making my collaboration with the Natural History Museum possible. I have been incredibly fortunate to have shared my PhD experience with some fantastic people. Felicity, Alex and Alison, my PhD experience would not have been 2 the same without you. Not only have we become great friends, bonding over the highs and lows of the PhD journey but together we have achieved so much over the past four years. I am so proud of everything we have accomplished with the Animal History Group and I could not have wished for better friends and colleagues. I want to extend a special thanks to Alison, who was only ever a phone call away in the months leading up to submission when I needed to talk through the most gnarly bits. Thank you. Above all, I must thank my family who are my strongest supporters and have always encouraged me to believe that I can achieve anything I put my mind to. I especially want to thank my parents, Debbie and Stephan, for their unwavering love, support and encouragement in this and everything. Finally, of course, I should thank Walter Rothschild for living such an extraordinary life – one which it has been a joy to explore and to use as a lens onto the world of natural history. This thesis was supported by a Professor Sir Richard Trainor PhD Scholarship. 3 Contents Abstract 1 Acknowledgements 2 Illustrations, Photographs and Tables 5 Introduction – Rothschild’s Zoological Enterprise 9 Chapter I Money Matters 48 Chapter II Research 92 Chapter III Rothschild’s Zoological Museum 132 Chapter IV Acquisition 178 Chapter V Novitates Zoologicae: A Journal of Zoology 222 Conclusion 272 Epilogue – Rothschild’s Legacy 285 Bibliography 293 Appendix I – A full list of the specimen suppliers Rothschild conducted business with in 1895. 330 4 Illustrations, Photographs and Tables Fig. 1.1 Ancestor Tree of Lionel Walter Rothschild 54 Fig. 1.2 Tring Park Mansion from Morning Calls (1896). Image 56 from HathiTrust Digital Library digitised by Google Inc. Fig. 1.3 Rothschild’s childhood specimen collection. PH/13/5, 57 Archives of the Natural History Museum, London. Fig. 1.4 Tring Museum (1899) © Trustees of the Natural History 59 Museum Table 1.1 A breakdown of the minimum total expenditure for 1895 65 Fig. 1.5 A breakdown of the minimum total expenditure for 1895 66 Table 1.2 Expenditure on specimen acquisition by source for 1895 67 Table 1.3 Costs of museum maintenance and upkeep 71 Table 1.4 Costs of museum supplies for 1895 73 Fig. 1.6 Walter Rothschild © Trustees of the Natural History 77 Museum. Karl Jordan Douglas Glass Collection, Neg 25 File 1100, November 1957. Reproduced by permission of the copyright holder. Ernst Hartert from British Birds Vol. XXVII. Reproduced with the permission of British Birds. Table 1.5 The salaries and total payments received by staff for 1895 78 Fig. 1.7 Wage Comparison between Tring and BMNH 81 Fig. 1.8 Triangle of Activity 85 Table 1.6 A breakdown of payments made to produce Novitates in 86 1895 Fig 3.1 Floor plans for Tring Museum c.1892 138 Fig 3.2 Exterior of Tring Museum facing Park Street, showing 139 the extended building. To the left you can see the end of 5 “the Cottage”. Copyright The Francis Frith Collection. Reproduced with their permission. Fig 3.3 The phases of development at Tring Museum 141 Fig 3.4 The entomological wing built in 1912 © Trustees of the 142 Natural History Museum Fig 3.5 Original exterior of Tring Museum facing Park Street. 143 From A Year with Nature, Westell (1900). Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library. Contributed by University of California Libraries. Fig 3.6 The Hill Museum Exterior, Witley, Surrey. From The Bulletin of the Hill Museum (1921). Image from the 144 Biodiversity Heritage Library. Contributed by Smithsonian Libraries. Fig 3.7 The ground floor as per the 1898 museum guide 151 Fig 3.8 The first floor as per the 1898 museum guide 152 Fig 3.9 Plans of the zebra and antelope rooms as per the 1898 153 museum guide Fig 3.10 ‘Some Big Game’. Racing Illustrated, vol. III, no. 78, 2 154 July 1898. Image from Gale Primary Sources, Nineteenth Century UK Periodicals. Fig 3.11 Hummingbird Case Postcard. Natural History Museum, 160 Tring, Library Photographic Collections. Fig 3.12 Deer displays in the 1909-1912 extension (No date). 169 Natural History Museum, Tring, Library Photographic Collections. Fig 3.13 Cetacean displays in the 1909-1912 extension (No date). 169 Natural History Museum, Tring, Library Photographic Collections. Fig 3.14 A Corner of the Antelope Room.