He taught Charles Darwin the craft that later sailed on the Beagle.
John Edmonstone was born in Demerara, in what is now Guyana, around 1790, and had learned the craft of taxidermy in one of the richest natural landscapes on earth before he ever reached Britain.
Living at 37 Lothian Street in Edinburgh, he taught the art of specimen preservation, and among his pupils, around 1826 and 1827, was a young medical student named Charles Darwin. Darwin’s own notes record the lessons and his admiration for his teacher.
The skills Edmonstone passed on, the careful preserving of birds and animals, went on to serve Darwin aboard HMS Beagle, where the specimens he gathered and kept would inform his later work. Edmonstone’s expertise, carried from the forests of Demerara to a classroom in Edinburgh, became part of the toolkit of one of science’s most consequential voyages.
He taught a master his craft, and the record keeps the lesson.
His record is in Charles Darwin’s Edinburgh notebooks. His card is in the deck.
Explore the record
Timeline
- c. 1790Born into slavery in Demerara (now Guyana), where he learned the craft of taxidermy.
- 1817Brought to Edinburgh, where he taught taxidermy at 37 Lothian Street.
- 1826Taught the craft of specimen preservation to Charles Darwin, then a medical student.
- 1831The skills he passed on served Darwin aboard HMS Beagle, preserving specimens that informed his later work.
0 salutes
I salute John Edmonstone, who taught the craft of taxidermy that later sailed on the Beagle.
Lived alongside
