William Hunter and the Anatomy of the Modern Museum
INTRODUCTION
William Hunter and the Anatomy of the Modern Museum marks the William Hunter Tercentenary – 300 years since the birth Hunterian founder, Dr William Hunter (1718-1783).
This major exhibition not only offers a critical examination of Hunter - a man of exceptional vision who saw no boundaries between art and science - but explores his life, character and career as well as his research, collection and links to Glasgow.
Hunter’s original Enlightenment collection is a rare example which has survived largely intact. These objects and artworks are the foundation of The Hunterian collections today.
William Hunter and the Anatomy of the Modern Museum showcases this truly unique and encyclopaedic collection, examining the circumstances that made it possible and the means by which it was amassed. The exhibition also reveals the contribution made by Hunter to the development of modern museums as we know them today, exploring the interplay between the arts and sciences in the pursuit of knowledge over the course of the 18th century.
More than 400 items are on display, reunited for the first time in over 150 years and presented to highlight the connections between them. These include fossils; anatomical specimens and preparations; paintings, drawings and prints; rare books and manuscripts; ethnographical objects; rocks and mineral specimens; coins and medals; shells, corals, beetles, butterflies and examples of taxidermy.
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