Charles Darwin - Becoming a Geologist
The naturalist, Charles Robert Darwin (1809 -1882), is principally famous for the theory of evolution by natural selection and for his authorship of The Origin of Species. But, for much of his early career, Darwin thought of himself as a geologist.
Charles Darwin - Becoming a Geologist tells the story of Darwin's early life, his interest in the natural world and his development as a geologist at home in Shrewsbury, at the University of Edinburgh and at Cambridge.
The story begins with the collections of stones, insects, wax seals and bird-eggs that Darwin made as a schoolboy and the chemistry laboratory that he set up with his brother in their tool-shed. It continues with some of the controversial geological theories that he was exposed to while studying medicine in Edinburgh and his subsequent move to Cambridge to prepare for the Anglican Clergy.
At Cambridge, Darwin was inspired to study natural philosophy by the Professor of Botany John Stevens Henslow (1796-1861), who arranged geological fieldwork training with Adam Sedgwick in North Wales and recommended him for the position of naturalist on the Voyage of HMS Beagle (1831-1836).
The second part of the exhibition focuses on the skills and tools that Darwin had to master to become an expert geologist. The Museum has created an online interactive, Tools of the Trade, that explores some of these concepts.
Tools of the Trade
Want to try your hand as a geologist aboard HMS Beagle? Our new Tools of the Trade Flash interactive will help you to find out more about the tools that Darwin used to map the locations he visited and to analyse and identify the geological specimens he collected.
>>Click here to try Tools of the Trade
There is also a sister exhibition Beetles, Finches and Barnacles: The Zoological Collections of Charles Darwin on display at the University Museum of Zoology.
Becoming a Geologist has been made possible by a grant from the Designation Challenge Fund of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council.
