Sir William Jardine : a life in natural history
"Sir William Jardine (1800-74) of Jardine Hall near Lockerbie, was a Scottish baronet and landowner. He was also a magistrate, Convenor of the Church of Scotland, and Deputy Lieutenant of Dumfriesshire in 1841, but, above all he was an eminent naturalist in several fields, knowledgeable about birds, fishes, insects, plants and geology." "The author of several books and the editor of journals promoting natural history, Sir William paid collectors in all quarters of the globe to send him specimens of birds in order to further the knowledge of ornithology. He owned the finest private natural history museum and library in Britain. Using these, he made natural history available to anyone who could read by issuing The Naturalist's Library, a series of 40 small volumes on birds, mammals, fishes and insects, with coloured plates, at the cost of six shillings each. This gave a great impetus to the study of natural history and made it popular throughout the Victorian era." "Sir William was a most likable man, amusing and generous, knowledgeable, but sharing his learning with grace, making his library and museum available to all who wished to consult them, whatever their social background. This book, as well as being a biography of the man, gives a glimpse of life in the Scottish Borders during the second half of the nineteenth century."--BOOK JACKET
Print Book, English, 2001
Leicester University Press, London, 2001