Rare shells, including specimens collected during Captain James Cook’s final voyage, have been recently put on display at the Chesters Roman Fort and Museum in Chollerford, UK, for the first time in 100 years.
The collection, described as “internationally important”, once belonged to a British collector named Bridget Atkinson (1732-1814) before being passed onto her grandson John Clayton. Thanks to her connections and acquaintances, Atkinson managed to acquire shells from all over the world. One of those acquaintances was a man named George Dixon, who served as an armorer for Captain Cook during the third voyage on HMS Resolution. During the voyage, which made stops in South Africa, New Zealand, and the Hawaiian Islands, Dixon collected various shells that he sent to Atkinson.
Most of Atkinson’s collection was sold by the early 20th century, but 200 specimens, including those sent to her by Dixon, ended up with the zoology department of Armstrong College (modern Newcastle University). At some point in the 1980s, the department’s offices were cleaned out, and the shells were discarded as trash.
But before they were taken away by the waste collectors, Professor Dr John Buchanan spotted the shells and saved them. Recently, Buchanan’s family decided to donate the shells to English Heritage, a charity that manages historic monuments.
“We’ve always known about Bridget Atkinson’s collection but had believed it completely lost,” said Dr Frances McIntosh, English Heritage’s Collections Curator for Hadrian’s Wall and the North East. “To discover that the shells have not only survived but been kept safe and loved all this time is nothing short of a miracle.”