scholarly journals I. On the scelidothere ( scelidotherium, leptocephalum , Owen), a large extinct terrestrial sloth

1857 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 312-314
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Charles Darwin ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Extinct Species ◽  
Northern Patagonia ◽  
History Of ◽  
Osseous System

The extinct species of large terrestrial Sloth, indicated by the above name, was first made known by portions of its fossil skeleton having been discovered by Charles Darwin, Esq., F. R. S., at Punta Alta, Northern Patagonia. These portions were described by the author in the Appendix to the 'Natural History of the Voyage of H. M. S. Beagle'. The subsequent acquisition by the British Museum of the collection of Fossil Mammalia brought from Buenos Ayres by M. Bravard, has given further evidence of the generic distinction of the Scelidothere, and has supplied important characters of the osseous system, and especially of the skull, which the fragments from the hard consolidated gravel of Punta Alta did not afford.

VII. On the Scelidothere (Scelidotherium leptocephalum, Owen)

1857 ◽  
Vol 147 ◽  
pp. 101-110 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Charles Darwin ◽  
British Museum ◽  
The Other ◽  
Extinct Species ◽  
Northern Patagonia ◽  
History Of ◽  
Peculiar Character ◽  
Osseous System

The extinct species of large terrestrial Sloth, indicated by the above name, was first made known by portions of its fossil skeleton discovered by Charles Darwin, Esq., F. R. S., at Punta Alta, Northern Patagonia, which were described by me in the chapters of the Appendix to the ‘Natural History of the Voyage of H. M. S. Beagle,’ treating of the “Fossil Mammalia” collected during that voyage. The subsequent acquisition by the British Museum of the collection of Fossil Mammalia brought from the pleistocene beds, Buenos Ayres, by M. Bravard, has given further evidence of the generic distinction of the Scelidothere from the other Gravigrades of the Bruta phylophaga , and has supplied important characters of the osseous system, and especially of the skull, which the fragments from the hard consolidated gravel of Punta Alta did not afford. The best portion of the cranium from the latter locality wanted the facial part anterior to the orbit, and the greater part of the upper walls; sufficient, however, remained to indicate the peculiar character of its slender proportions, and hence the name leptocephalum proposed for the species.

The Legacy of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians’

2019 ◽  
pp. 156-195
Author(s):  
Bill Jenkins
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Medical Student ◽  
Natural History ◽  
Evolutionary Theory ◽  
Charles Darwin ◽  
Early Nineteenth Century ◽  
History Of ◽  
The City

The penultimate chapter looks at the longer-term impact of the efflorescence of evolutionary speculation in early-nineteenth-century Edinburgh on later generations of natural historians. First it examines the evangelical reaction against progressive models of the history of life and its role in the eclipse of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians.’ Next it examines to the evolutionary theory proposed by Robert Chambers in his anonymously published Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation (1844) to assess its possible debt to the Edinburgh transformists of the 1820s and 1830s. Finally it turns to the important question of the possible influence of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians’ on Charles Darwin during his time as a medical student in Edinburgh in the years 1825 to 1827, during which period he rubbed shoulders with many of the key proponents of evolutionary ideas in the city.

Richard Bradley's Relationship With Sir Hans Sloane

1970 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-77 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Prolific Author ◽  
Good Picture ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
University Of Cambridge ◽  
History Of ◽  
The University

Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753) is remembered more for his activities in the spheres of science and medicine than for his original contributions to these fields. His large treatise on the natural history of Jamaica (2 vols., 1707- 1725) and other writings were useful additions to the scientific literature, but they were overshadowed by his activities as President of both the Royal Society (1727-1741) and the Royal College of Physicians (1719-1735) and by his having provided the collections which became the foundation of the British Museum. There is no definitive study on him, but the two recent biographies by De Beer and Brooks provide a good picture of his life and work (1). Sloane carried on a voluminous correspondence, and most of the letters written to him are preserved in the British Museum—largely unpublished (2). Among them are a dozen letters from Richard Bradley (1688?—5 November 1732), which throw somewhat more light on Bradley than on Sloane. They also illustrate the adverse conditions under which men without wealth have sometimes worked when pursuing scientific activities. Bradley was a prolific author of books on agriculture, horticulture, biology, and medicine. As will appear from his letters, he was often the pawn of booksellers, and John Martyn (1699-1768), his malicious rival, commented shortly after his death that ‘The booksellers have lost a good easy pad’ (3). Bradley was at times only a popularizer or a hack, but he also produced writings having scientific merit (4). Furthermore, he was a Fellow of the Royal Society and the first Professor of Botany at the University of Cambridge. His correspondence with Sloane is therefore of interest for adding to our knowledge of both men and the scientific activities of their time.

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