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In 1799 the Company of Surgeons in London received the museum collection of the surgeon anatomist John Hunter (1728–93), which was purchased by the government and transferred into the care of the Company under the supervision of an independent Board of Trustees (The Hunterian Collection Board of Trustees). In 1800 the Company of Surgeons became the Royal College of Surgeons in London by a Charter of George III (subsequently amended by a Charter of 1843 to The Royal College of Surgeons of England). The Hunterian Collection was incorporated into the College Museum, to which additions of objects, specimens were made throughout the 19th and early 20th century. In 1909 the College received on loan from the Royal Society of Medicine the museum collection of the Odontological Society of Great Britain: this loan was converted into a gift in 1941. Following destruction of a large part of the collection and of the original College building by bombing during the Second World War, a decision was taken to split the original College museum into four departments, each of which operated separate accession and/or disposal procedures. These were brought under a common management structure in the 1990s. From 2010 – 2017 the Museums and Archives came under the same Department.

Source: Collection development policy

Date: Not known

Licence: CC BY-NC

Hunterian Collection

3,758 specimens, mostly of human and comparative anatomy and pathology or natural history, together with 25 paintings and approximately 950 drawings, made or owned by John Hunter (1728-93), and included in the original transfer of 1799. The Hunterian Collection provides a comprehensive record of one of the most significant figures in the history of surgery and comparative anatomy and it gives a unique insight into the injuries and diseases that an 18th century surgeon treated. Hunterian artworks include paintings by George Stubbs (1724-1806) and Benjamin West (1738-1820). It includes items purchased by Hunter, such as a collection of 97 microscope slides prepared by William Hewson. Hunter’s published works, surviving manuscripts and casebooks are held in the College Library. The collection is central to the Hunterian Museum displays, and the specimens have ongoing relevance to clinical, scientific and historical research.

College Museum Collection

3602 items prepared by museum conservators such as Richard Owen (1804-1892), William Henry Flower (1831-99) and Arthur Keith (1866-1955) or acquired by the College by purchase, gift or exchange since 1800. The bulk of the collection is comparative anatomy, but there are also preparations of human anatomy, and approximately 200 objects, including teaching models, ceremonial items and objects personally associated with College members. The earliest specimens of human remains are from the upper Nile and date from between 2500 BCE and 500 CE and the John Evelyn’s anatomical tables, the oldest known human anatomical preparations of their kind in Europe, date from the mid-17th century. The collection also includes a small number of modern specimens of human anatomy covered under the Human Tissue Act. Around 5% of the collection is displayed in the Hunterian Museum (from February 2023), including iconic dodo and moa skeletons, and specimens presented by important figures in the history of science, such as Charles Darwin (1809-1882) and Robert Koch (1843-1910). The rest of the collection is stored for use in temporary exhibitions, by loan and through research.

Odontological Collection

12,536 items, mostly specimens or models of human and comparative dental anatomy and pathology acquired by the Odontological Society of Great Britain from the late 1850s, or by the College after the transfer of the Odontological Collection in 1909. Many specimens were donated by pioneers in dental surgery, such as John Tomes (1815-1895), while a sub-collection of approximately 1200 zoological and anatomical specimens came from renowned primatologist William Charles Osman Hill (1901-1975). The collection also contains important collections of archaeological human remains from Anglo-Saxon burial site excavations at Breedon-on-the-Hill in Leicestershire and Polhill in Kent. While a few items are displayed in the Hunterian Museum, the majority are in store and are used in research and teaching in a variety of disciplines, ranging from dentistry to zoology and bioarchaeology.

Historical Instrument Collection

A collection of 9,130 surgical or medical instruments dating from the 17th century to the present day, acquired by the College since the early 19th century. The collection illustrates the development of surgical instrumentation and includes sets of instruments or equipment owned by important figures in the history of surgery, such as Robert Liston (1794-1847), Joseph Lister (1827-1912), William Macewen (1848-1924) and Harold Gillies (1882-1960). Many instruments are displayed throughout the Hunterian Museum (from February 2023) and are also frequently used in temporary exhibitions and in formal education, particularly KS4 Medicine Through Time. The majority are held in store and are available for research.

Microscope Slide Collection

Over 16,000 microscopic preparations dating from the 18th century to the present, ranging from early fluid-filled, sealed glass vials to modern diagnostic histopathology slides. The collection demonstrates stunning biological diversity as well as an array of techniques developed by renowned preparators. The 12,000 slides produced or collected by Museum Conservator, Professor John Thomas Quekett (1815–1861) form an important sub-collection, and his slides include samples taken from Hunterian specimens that were destroyed by bombing during the Second World War. The Microscope Slide Collection is used in research, and in events targeted at professional and public audiences. Examples of slides are displayed in the Hunterian Museum and the collection has been the focus of temporary exhibitions.

Pathology Collection

4,599 specimens of mostly human pathology, acquired by the College since 1800. The collection includes historical material from the collections of prominent surgeons such as Astley Cooper (1768–1841), some of which probably date to the late 18th century. The collection is mostly displayed in the RCSEng Anatomy and Pathology Museum and is used for surgical training through RCS courses and examinations, and by other qualified practitioners and students on recognised courses in medicine, nursing, allied health subjects, and related scientific/technical subjects. Some historical specimens (4% of the collection) are on public display in the Hunterian Museum. Specimens not on display are held in storage and are available for research.

Anatomy Collection

1150 specimens or models of human anatomy, including a small number dating from the late 19th century. Most are post-1950 accessions and the majority of the collection is covered by the Human Tissue Act. The collection is used in professional surgical and medical training and is displayed in the RCSEng Anatomy and Pathology Museum (from April 2022). A small number of anatomical models are displayed in the Hunterian Museum.

Special Collections

This includes objects of historic, artistic or architectural significance acquired by the College since 1800, including a small number of items which were formerly the property of the College’s predecessor body, the Company of Surgeons in London (1745–99). It comprises 3,576 works of fine and decorative art, including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs and sculpture, some of which date from the 16th century. The majority of the collection consists of portraits of surgeons or patrons associated with the College or its predecessor bodies; prominent figures in the history of British surgery, medicine and the sciences; works depicting the College buildings and other places associated with British surgery and medicine; and works depicting surgical procedures, pathological or anatomical features; surgical patients; and natural history. Artists represented in the collections include Hans Holbein the Younger (1497-1543), William Hogarth (1697-1764) and Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792). Special collections also include historic silver (325 items), medals (231 items), furniture (118 items) and ceramics, including drug jars (122 items). Special Collections are displayed in the Hunterian Museum (from February 2023) and throughout the College building.

Handling Collections

The museum holds small collections of un-accessioned items for use in demonstration and handling during formal and informal learning and outreach events. The nature of some items e.g replicas, duplicates or explanatory material lie outside the RCSEng’s collecting policy.

Source: Collection development policy

Date:

Licence: CC BY-NC

Founded in 1807, The Hunterian is Scotland’s oldest public museum and home to one of the largest collections outside the National Museums and is the largest university museum in Scotland. The Hunterian is one of the leading university museums in the UK and its collections have been Recognised as a Collection of National Significance. The Hunterian collections are built on Dr William Hunter’s founding bequest of 1783, which included paintings, prints, manuscripts, books, coins, natural history specimens, ethnographic objects and an extensive anatomical teaching collection. The manuscripts, books and some of the prints are now held in the Special Collections of the University Library. The Hunterian’s collections have grown over the last 200 year to include: scientific instruments used by James Watt, Joseph Lister and Lord Kelvin; outstanding Roman artefacts from the Antonine Wall; major earth and life sciences holdings; one of the world’s greatest numismatic collections; ethnographic and natural history objects from Captain Cook’s Pacific voyages; art collections including Old Masters, the world’s largest permanent display of the work of James McNeill Whistler and the largest single holding of the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

Source: Collection development policy

Date: Not known

Licence: CC BY-NC

Art Collections

(42,000 objects – decorative and applied art – 1,745; drawings – 1,300; oils – 970; prints – 36,000; sculpture – 130; watercolours – 1,000)

When the Hunterian opened in 1807 the presence of Hunter’s cabinet of pictures meant that it was the first museum in Britain with a gallery of paintings, although two paintings, a copy of Raphael’s Entombment and a Martyrdom of St Catherine by Jan Cossiers had been acquired by the University in 1776. Hunter’s collection included 30 old masters, mainly Dutch and Flemish, but with interesting Italian and French works. The important masterpieces are Chardin’s Lady taking Tea, a large canvas by Philips Koninck which is one of the finest examples of his panoramic landscape paintings, and a fine Still Life with Dead Game by Frans Snyders. Among Hunter’s smaller paintings are Rembrandt’s oil sketch for the Entombment, a head study by Rubens, a painting on copper by Simon Vouet, and a group of paintings from the circle of Guido Reni, including a fine version of the Virgin Sewing. A further 26 Dutch and Flemish pictures were given in 1963 by Miss Ina Smillie, which extended the range of still life and genre painting and included a major work, Artemisia by Erasmus II Quellinus. There are also fine portraits by Mor, Sanchez-Coello, and Michele di Ridolfo di Ghirlandaio.

The Hunterian houses the major collection of the work of the Scottish architect and designer, Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868–1928), centred on the architect’s Estate and the Davidson Gift of 1945. Following Davidson’s death in 1945, the Mackintoshes’ heir Sylvan McNair transferred ownership of the Estate to the University of Glasgow. The Estate included over 800 works on paper and a small but important archive of photographs, papers and publications. The collection provides in-depth representation of all aspects of Mackintosh’s output, including furniture and interior design, architecture, graphic design and watercolour painting. Highlights include the reassembled principal interiors of the Mackintosh’s Glasgow house, presented as The Mackintosh House, a permanent installation within the Art Gallery. It is complemented by strong holdings of the work of Margaret and Frances Macdonald and J. Herbert McNair, and representative examples of works by other Glasgow Style designers, including Annie French, Jessie M. King and George Walton. Whistler’s art is represented by 80 oils, several hundred drawings and watercolours, and more than 2,000 impressions of his prints. The holding provides a particularly good representation of Whistler’s late work and his portraiture. In addition the Collection includes furniture, silver and ceramics, an extensive holding of the artist’s materials, and a varied group of personalia.

The Hunterian also houses significant collections of works by the Glasgow Boys and Scottish Colourists. The Glasgow Boys collections consist of some 200 paintings and drawings from their early careers to their later, more established years. The exceptional collection of paintings by the Scottish Colourists represents most aspects of their art, from landscape to still life and from Peploe and Cadell’s sparkling representations of Iona to Fergusson’s portrayal of women. With more than a hundred paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures, it is among the best collections of their work and includes Fergusson’s Les Eus, one of the most important Scottish paintings of the period.

The collection of about 40,000 prints, with an emphasis on works of art, covers the history of printmaking from the 15th century to the present day. The holdings of Dürer and early German engraving are good. Holdings of Italian prints from 1500-1700 are very good, with broad coverage, and fine examples of prints by most important masters provided by the collection of the political economist Professor W.R. Scott (1868-1940). The 18th century is represented by portraiture and caricature. Holdings of 19th and early 20th century prints are strongest in the area of the etching revival, with particularly good holdings of prints by and after J.M.W.Turner. The modern and contemporary collection is distinguished by its breadth, with good representation of 20th century Scottish artists. Prints were a part of the legacy from William Hunter’s founding bequest in 1783. While his collection, especially bound volumes of prints, and loose anatomical drawings, is mainly located in the Special Collections Department of Glasgow University Library there are eight volumes of Hunter’s prints are in The Hunterian, together with several intact volumes from historic print collections (notably that of the Duke of Essex).

In addition there are approximately 1200 drawings of all periods, including a few old master drawings, but British works from the 18th century onwards are more numerous. There are small holdings of decorative art, furniture, sculpture and modern and contemporary works of art.

Historical Collections

Archaeology and World Cultures

(Archaeology – 51,000 objects; World Cultures – 2,500 objects)

Strengths include Roman material from the Antonine Wall and the periods of military occupation in the first and second centuries AD; finds from excavations at brochs and other settlements of the Scottish Iron Age; human activity in both Scotland and Western Europe from the earliest hunters and fishermen to medieval times; smaller bodies of material from the early civilisations of Egypt and the Mediterranean world. Ethnographic collection includes early contact material from the pioneering voyages of Captain James Cook and that acquired on Pacific Islands by missionaries in the 19th century.

The Roman collection in the Hunterian Museum dates back to the late 17th century, when the third Marquis of Montrose presented a stone made by the Twentieth Legion, found at Old Kilpatrick at the western side of the Antonine Wall, to the Old College of the University of Glasgow. The Hunterian Museum now holds the pre-eminent collection of Roman artefacts in Scotland, and the Antonine Wall became part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site in July 2008. The Legionary stones, or “distance slabs”, found on the Antonine Wall record the length of wall completed by the various legions. Of the nineteen known, seventeen are in the Hunterian Museum. This body of material is unique and nothing similar has been found on any other frontiers of the Roman Empire. Other stones found on the line of the wall include tombstones and altars giving important information about the people who manned, and interacted with, the Roman forts.

University and General History

(2,600 objects)

The Hunterian houses three-dimensional documentary objects of famous staff and students at what is Britain fourth, and Scotland’s second oldest university founded in 1451. There are fitments and fragments from the structure of the ‘Old College’ built in the 17th century and demolished in 1870 when the University relocated to the Gilmorehill campus. Star items include the University’s silver-gilt mace dating from 1465, the silver Loving Cup and Quaich and the 18th century Blackstone Chair once used for oral examinations. The historical collection includes medieval and modern pottery, Scottish and English glass and pewter, medallions by James and William Tassie, and death-masks.

Numismatics

(70,000 objects)

The Hunterian houses one of the world’s great, and Scotland’s premier, collections containing coins, medals, tokens and related objects. About half is the original Hunter collection put together at the end of the 18th century, when it was second only in importance to the French Royal Collection. It contains Ancient Greek, Roman, Medieval and Modern coins as well as medals from the Renaissance to contemporary Scotland. Many of these are unique or extremely rare and most are in superb condition.

Scientific Collections

Scientific Instruments

(5,000 objects)

The Hunterian cares for a large collection of scientific and medical instruments accumulated from the 17th century onwards as a result of research and teaching activities in the University. Notable amongst the instruments are those worked on by James Watt including the model Newcomen Engine said to be the inspiration for his development of steam power. The collection of research and demonstration apparatus gathered together by Lord Kelvin is probably the most important single collection since it includes apparatus used in his pioneering research into electricity, telegraphy and thermodynamics. There are items used or created by Hunter, Joseph Lister, James Prescott Joule, Frederick Soddy and other leading scientists, as well as significant collections of items used for observing and measuring such as telescopes, microscopes and mechanical calculators. Recent acquisitions include the tide gauges designed by James Deas and used for a century to record the tides along the River Clyde.

Anatomy and Medical

(7,000 specimens)

These collections are a unique medical teaching material amassed by Hunter in his career as anatomist, obstetrician and doctor. They differ from other parts of The Hunterian Collection in that they represent things which Hunter and his school made and used professionally rather than acquired for leisure interests. The collections comprise wet preparations of human tissues and organs, skeletal material and some animal taxidermy specimens. Both Pathology and Anatomy also have considerable amounts of post-Hunter material and this includes comparative (animal) anatomy specimens, fine 19th century wax models and specimens made using recent techniques such as corrosion and plastination.

Some of the most striking specimens in the Anatomy collection are those associated with Hunter’s research leading to his most significant contributions to the advancement of medicine. Outstanding examples include the series of life size plaster casts of dissections showing the pregnant uterus, as illustrated in Hunter’s great work, ‘The Anatomy of the Gravid Uterus Exhibited in Figures’ (1774). Hunter contributed a great deal to the understanding of the lymphatic system and his mercury-injected preparations of lymphatic tissue are both beautiful and illuminating.

Mineralogy and Petrology

(162,500 specimens)

The Hunterian Museum holds over 120,000 rock and mineral specimens, with around 40,000 rock thin sections, as well as around 1500 cut gemstones, and 70 meteorites. The mineral collections include several very important older collections including those of William Hunter (one of the few surviving 18th century mineral collections anywhere), Thomas Brown of Lanfine (Scottish and world minerals), Frederick Eck (South American, and world minerals), James “Paraffin” Young (world-wide), Frank Rutley (world-wide; the author of ‘Rutley’s Elements of Mineralogy’), and Alexander Thoms (mostly Scottish), plus many more. Particular areas of strength include Leadhills-Wanlockhead minerals, Scottish Carboniferous zeolites, greenockite, old East European mining localities, old South American mining districts, Australian gold deposits, and gemstones.

The rock collections include much material resulting from the research activities of Glasgow University geologists over the past two centuries. Particular strengths include Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands; Iceland, Jan Mayen and Spitzbergen; Bernard Leake’s extensive Connemara rock collections, the geology of Mull, JW Gregory collections including Yunnan, Burma, Peru, and Australia, meteorites (including the High Possil meteorite which fell in Glasgow in 1804); GW Tyrrell’s collections from the USSR, Iceland, and Scotland; building stones, Alex Herriot’s collection of magnificent thin-sections and rocks, and a huge range of other research, teaching and display rocks from around the world.

Palaeontology

(152,000 specimens)

The catalogued palaeontological collections at the Hunterian include over 10,000 fossil plants, 10,000 vertebrates, 50,000 corals, 5,000 graptolites, 10,000 trilobites, 6,000 other arthropods, 40,000 molluscs, 10,000 microfossils, 5,000 brachiopods, 9,000 echinoderms, 10,000 thin sections of plants and other fossils, and several thousand Type and figured fossils.

Important acquisitions include the first discovered Scottish dinosaurs from the 1980s and dinosaur material collected by the famous Georgian general practitioner, Gideon Mantell. Other key collectors from whom material had been acquired include Alfred Leeds (Jurassic of Peterborough), the Reverend David Ure (earliest figured fossils from (1793)). The trilobite collection is one of the most important in the World, with research collections built up over the last 200 years from collectors and researchers in including Mrs Gray, Dr Keith Ingham, and George Rae. The George Rae bequest includes over 6,000 specimens of ammonites, fish, plants, but mostly trilobites.

Zoology

(Entomology – 518,000 specimens; Zoology – 73,200 specimens)

The Zoology collections represent most of the major groups of animals but with particular strength in the insects. The historical core of the collection is Hunter’s natural history material of which shells, insects and corals survive today some specimens from which are associated with major 18^th century figures such as Captain Cook, Joseph Banks, Johann Christian Fabricius and Daniel Solander. Reflecting its growth as a University teaching and reference collection, there is broad coverage of the animal kingdom with good mammalian osteology and a spirit collection of several thousand specimens representing mainly invertebrates and the lower vertebrates. The entomology collections were enhanced in the mid-20th century by two major donations, of foreign Coleoptera from T.G.Bishop and the British insects of JJFX King. University staff added significant material in the areas of economic, medical and regional (Scottish) entomology. Other notable study collections include John Graham Kerr’s South American lungfish, world Mollusca, Himalayan bird skins and the Hansell collection of animal artefacts (the National Bird Nest Reference Collection, insect nests and other constructions).

Source: Collection development policy

Date:

Licence: CC BY-NC

The collection was initiated under the founding curator Mervyn Palmer, when the museum was established in 1932. Donations of large amounts of natural history, especially taxidermy, formed a major part of the museum’s early collection. Local donors predominated, and Mr Palmer actively sought to acquire a reference collection of lepidoptera, by corresponding with the RAMM in Exeter and museums in London. Early accession registers 1932-1969 provide reasonable details. The museum had an ‘anything and everything’ attitude to collecting, which has given the museum its eclectic character, but led to storage problems by the 1990s, since when the collecting has been gradually more selective. Documentation was poor from 1969-1985.

From 1986 accessions were recorded to museum standards, and the museum began a new numbering system using the MLA prefix ILFCM. There was much re-organisation of the poorly stored and displayed material in the 1990s and 2000s.

In 2014 the museum began to digitise the collection onto MODES and E-Hive databases.

There are important collections of African ethnography and South American archaeology, and archives on Mervyn Palmers career, significant because he was a professional collector. A set of First World War photographs of the town’s soldiers has recently been recognised as a rare type of collection. There is now a need to conduct more research into the origins and significance of parts of the collection – for example an herbarium recently found in the loft, and the provenance and importance of the extensive lepidoptera collection.

Source: Collection development policy

Date: 2018

Licence: CC BY-NC

The collections comprise of some 28,000 items including:

1. Photographs, paintings, engravings and other pictures of local interest, demonstrating the progressive changes in the locality over the last two hundred years.
2. Domestic social items (miscellaneous ceramics, glass, metalwork, wooden items, dolls, toys and costume)
3. Agricultural history items, mainly hand-tools.
4. Cobblers’, printers’ and other craftsmen’s tools and equipment.
5. Clocks, watches, surveying instruments and other scientific equipment.
6. Coins, tokens and medals.
7. Maritime history items relating to Ilfracombe area and elsewhere including ship models.
8. Militaria from Civil War to 2nd World War including firearms and edged weapons.
9. Sporting firearms.
10. Ethnographic items including collections from South America (Palmer), Africa and Asia and Polynesia.
11. Archaeological material local and non-local.
12. Geological material, minerals and fossils local and non-local.
13. Mounted British and non-British reptiles, birds and mammals (including old specimen game heads and some educational displays of British species). An important collection of British bats preserved in fluid and cabinets of British and non-British birds’ eggs.
14. Cabinets of butterflies, moths, beetles, shells and other invertebrates British and non-British.
15. Herbaria including pressed flowering plants, ferns and seaweed;
16. Archives of books, documents and papers relating to the area of interest, mainly available for reference rather than display including an important collection of bound copies of Ilfracombe newspapers 1871 – 1953.

Source: Collection development policy

Date: 2018

Licence: CC BY-NC

Collection Identifier:

IFMP-COL-001

Custodial History:

Assembled since the museum’s founding in 2003. Items have been acquired through donation, rescue from industrial decommissioning, or long-term loan from private collectors and engineering firms.

Source: Collection Level Description

Date: 2025

Licence: CC BY-NC

Collection Identifier:

IFMP-COL-001

Description:

This collection comprises historic internal combustion and steam-powered engines, primarily from the 19th and 20th centuries. The collection includes stationary engines, marine propulsion systems, electrical generators, and mechanical workshop equipment. A significant number of engines are operational and form part of live demonstrations. The collection interprets the evolution of industrial power, engine technology, and their applications in industry, agriculture, and maritime contexts.

Date Range of Material:

ca. 1880 – Present

Geographical Coverage:

Primarily the United Kingdom, with selected international examples (e.g., European and American engine designs).

Collection Type:

Industrial heritage; Engineering and technology; Energy and power generation

Subjects Covered:

• Internal combustion engines (diesel, gas, petrol)
• Steam engines and boilers
• Generator sets and dynamos
• Industrial workshop machinery
• Engine control systems and instrumentation
• Marine propulsion technology

Strengths:

• Working condition of large industrial engines
• Live demonstrations and interpretation
• Focus on preservation through operation
• Technical manuals, blueprints, and period documentation

Physical Extent and Medium:

Over. 100 large machines; additional components, tools, spares, and archives (paper and digital formats). Heavy engineering equipment and large-scale objects predominantly in metal, with associated mechanical and electrical systems.

Arrangement:

Objects are arranged by function and type within exhibit halls, with sections for:

• Diesel Hall
• Steam Hall
• Marine Engine Gallery
• Workshop and Foundry

Access Conditions:

Public access during published opening hours; research and academic access by appointment. Some materials are in secure storage or undergoing restoration.

Language of Material:

Primarily English

Archive:

• Manufacturing Records for:-
  • Petter
  • Fielding
  • Coborn
  • Ailsa Craig
  • Atlantic
  • Brush Diesels
  • Sisson (Gloucester)
  • Belliss & Morcom
• Operating manuals and technical drawings
• Photographic records of restorations
• Oral histories and donor information
• Video footage of operational machinery

Legal Status:

Mixture of owned, loaned, and conditionally donated items. Full provenance is documented for accessioned objects.

Rights and Reproduction:

Copyright held by the museum unless otherwise indicated. Reproduction permitted by request under standard museum terms.

Management Responsibility:

Curator of Industrial Collections
Internal Fire Museum of Power
Tan-y-groes, Ceredigion, SA43 2JS, United Kingdom

Related Units of Description:

Some items are linked to private collections, regional engine societies, and industrial sites.

Date of Description:

2025-06-18

Author of Description:

Collections Management Team, Internal Fire Museum of Power

Source: Collection Level Description

Date: 2025

Licence: CC BY-NC

The original Inverness Museum opened in 1881 and began to develop as a Highland and Jacobite collection. One of the important early additions was a group of historic Stuart portraits donated by the family of Prince Frederick Duleep Singh, including a portrait of Prince Charles Edward Stuart attributed to Pompeo Batoni and a Cromwell that Prince Freddy hung upside down. Subsequent additions to the collection include examples of Highland landscapes by Scottish artists including Alexander Nasmyth, John Quinton Pringle and Tom Scott.

The Museum presents history and heritage in the Capital of the Highlands. On the ground floor are displays about Scottish geology and natural history as well as the archaeology of the Highlands, including Pictish stones. The displays continue on the first floor with the more recent history of the Highlands – Jacobite memorabilia, Inverness silver, Highland weapons and bagpipes. The first floor also features a programme of temporary exhibitions.

In 1980 a puma was captured in Inverness-shire; it is believed that it was an abandoned pet. The puma was subsequently put into a wildlife park. When it died it was stuffed and placed in the Museum.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article “Inverness Museum and Art Gallery”, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Source: Wikipedia

Date: 2025

Licence: CC-BY-SA