EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. Brief Description of item(s)
An autograph manuscript page from the Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals written in the hand of Charles Darwin(1809-1882), 1872
1 page, quarto leaf, roughly cut at the foot (192 x 202 mm), Ink on blue wove paper, c.101 words on 12 lines. Paginated (p.8) in the hand of Darwin
Condition: Good, slight spotting, mark on verso (based on assessor’s contact with similar pages of Darwin’s manuscripts and from the Auction description/ illustration)
2. Context
Provenance: The Darwin family – Charles Darwin; his daughter Henrietta Litchfield (1843-1927); her niece Margaret Keynes, nee Darwin (1890-1984); thence by descent
Bibliography/Literature
Darwin, Charles (1872) The expression of the emotions in man and animals. London: John Murray
Darwin Manuscripts (Digitised notes on Origin)". Cambridge Digital Library. Retrieved 25 November 2018 (https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/darwin_mss/1) van Wyhe, John (2008) Darwin: The Story of the Man and His Theories of Evolution. London: Andre Deutsch
3. Waverley criteria
The manuscript fragment meets Waverley criteria 1. It is a paginated manuscript page in the hand of Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882) the English naturalist, biologist and geologist and arguably one of the most influential and recognisable figures in human history. Darwin’s ground breaking scientific work on the evolution of species titled On the Origin of Species was first published in 1859. It was the first of three major works in which he sought to explain the diversity of life and the modification of evolutionary descent through natural selection; The Descent of Man (1871) and The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872) completing Darwin’s trilogy on evolution.
This page from his draft for the Expression of the Emotion in Man and Animals is a physical manifestation of his manuscript draft, likely written at his house in Down, Kent where Darwin completed the manuscript for the book in just four months early in 1872. Now preserved by English Heritage, Down House is internationally recognised as a significant place in the history of science and evolution and so this insertion not only represents a good example of Darwin’s working practice - which was to revise continually and refine his prose - but as a physical manifestation holds significant association to a place of outstanding significance.
The text of this manuscript was published on p.31 of the first edition of the Expressions of the Emotions in Man and Animals but with minor stylistic differences to the published version making it unique.
DETAILED CASE
1. Detailed description of item(s) if more than in Executive summary, and any comments.
The manuscript page is from Chapter 1 (p.31) in Darwin’s final work in his series of ground breaking evolutionary writings in which he discusses the evolution of human psychology and the ability of man and animals and their ability to feel and express emotions. The text reads:
“….. Everyone protects himself when falling to the ground by extending his arms, & as Prof. Alison has remarked few can desist acting thus, when falling voluntarily on a soft bed. A man often puts on his gloves quite unconsciously when going out of doors;& this may seem an extremely simple operation but as he who had taught a child to put on gloves knows that this it [sic] is by no means so simple ….”
The content of the leaf has been identified by George Darwin on the verso as p.31 in the Expression of the Emotions. Another pencil note is also present which appears to be one of George Darwin’s children.
On the recto in graphite is “DAR 185:143” - the reference given to it by Cambridge University Library where it was previously on deposit prior to sale.
Manuscript pages of this particular manuscript are held in the Department of Manuscripts at Cambridge University Library with 4 leaves understood to be preserved at the Linnaean Society. Each fragment of this draft manuscript is unique. It is also thought that this fragment, long with one other page, are the only manuscript leaves from Darwin’s Expression of the Emotions in man and Animals to remain in private hands.
A digital image of this page exists on the Darwin manuscripts project hosted by Cambridge University (https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-DAR-00185/734)
2. Detailed explanation of the outstanding significance of the item(s).
This manuscript page in its physical form is far more significant than the information conveyed by the words written on it. The historical/research value of the text may not be as significant as it tells us things that we know or that we could glean from a digital copy such as that available through Cambridge University Library’s Darwin Manuscripts portal; but it could be argued that it holds evidential value as we are able to gain a greater understanding about how Darwin considered and re-worked his manuscript drafts prior to publication. Digital copies can save/show textual content but it is the historical importance in the material and physical manifestation of the insertion which gives it its outstanding significance.
The manuscript page also needs to be considered for its visual and communal value which in both cases can be considered as extremely significant. This significance and importance lies in its tangibility, how it makes one feel, and not necessarily just to its intellectual content. It represents a direct and physical connection to Darwin and his pioneering work and in that physical form, for instance being placed on public display, provides a springboard from which the public can reflect on this iconic man - the greatest observer in the history of science and the world-changing impact his books had not only on our understanding of the natural world but also on religion, history and society.
Context is everything. If a member of the public were to look at a handwritten leaf from this volume at Darwin’s house for example, it creates an incredibly powerful impression, far more than a published edition. As it is thought that Darwin wrote his original draft at home in Down House, this piece of manuscript represents a tangible link between an historic property and the life of the man who lived and worked there. In such cases, digital or surrogate copies do not suffice.
A further consideration is that this manuscript page is one of the last two known extant fragments to exist in a private collection. From a cultural and heritage perspective, to grant its permanent export would in effect, disperse the penultimate piece of this historically significant manuscript by one of the most iconic men in history.
The assessor believes that the opportunity to retain this manuscript leaf would not only ensure its future preservation for the nation but retain the potential for it to contribute to the continued influence of contemporary thinking and literature of the Darwinian legacy for future generations.