A copy of a watercolour by John A Gilfillan, Professor of Drawing and Painting at Anderson's University, of the interior of the Andersonian Museum shortly after its opening in 1831.
The Andersonian Museum developed out of the collection of scientific apparatus and natural history specimens collected by John Anderson and bequeathed by him to Anderson's University, in 1796. This formed the nucleus of the Museum's collections to which were added other specimens illustrative of local natural history, along with substantial donations of coins, medals and stuffed animals and birds from around the world.
The museum building was designed by James Smith of Jordanhill, President of the University and a significant benefactor. In 1856 another of the museum's benefactors, William Euing, proposed the building of an extension to the museum. Designed by J T Rochead, it was completed in 1862.
The museum was an important teaching resource, and an attraction for visitors on days when it was open to the public. But it fell into decline through lack of funding, and when pressure on space increased with the formation of the Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College in 1887, the major Zoological and Ethnological Collections were given to the Hunterian Museum and the Andersonian Museum closed.
Reference: P2/1/14
Reproduced with the permission of Strathclyde University Archives
Keywords:
Anderson's University, Andersonian Museum, animals, birds, coins, cupolas, domes, ethnology, Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College, Hunterian Museum, museums, natural history, zoology
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