Under the Skin 1: An Incomplete Dodo

Bones lovely bones. This week I am looking at some bones, the underpinnings of the bodies of many Beautiful Beasts, and fabulous structures in their own right. This incomplete Dodo is from the Hunterian Museum. See more about the Dodo my blog post on Pencil and Leaf.

I liked its assembled nature.

 

Raphus cucullatus
skeleton

Object Type
Mounted dry bone

An imperfect mounted skeleton of a dodo (Raphus cucullatus). The bones are from several individuals.

This mounted skeleton of a dodo is a composite from several individuals. The bones were from a large collection excavated at La Mare aux Songes in Mauritius in 1865. The first hundred or so of these bones were shipped to Richard Owen and from these he published his monograph on the osteology of the dodo in 1869. Further collections of bones were sent to England and were sold by auction. The College Conservator, William Henry Flower, purchased a series of bones for £10 from which he was able to construct this partial articulated skeleton for display.

 

Dodo sketches pencil A5 sketchbook