The History of Wandsworth Common


Mary Anning




Portrait of Mary Anning with her dog Tray and the Golden Cap outcrop near Lyme Regis in the background, painted before 1842. (Natural History Museum, London)

(Click on image to enlarge)

[It is worth recalling that the pioneering palaeontologist and fossil collector Mary Anning (1799-1847) — who discovered ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and pterosaurs at Lyme Regis — was also active at this time (NHM: "Mary Anning, Unsung Hero"). It is possible that Henrietta knew Mary, perhaps through her uncle William Hyde Wollaston.

I wrote this note about Mary Anning c.2021. But why did I link Mary Anning with William Hyde Wollaston? I probably read it somewhere — but where? Perhaps the connection was through William Buckland, who visited Mary in Lyme Regis and helped to bring her work to the attention of London scientific circles. Keep searching.]

— NHM: Mary Anning, Unsung Hero.

— Geological Society: Mary Anning and the Geological Society.]






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Philip Boys ("HistoryBoys")