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Wed, 25 Feb 1998 17:05:16 -0500 |
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The "mermaid" displayed in "Mermaids, Mummies and Mastodons" at the Peale
Museum in Baltimore was a loan from the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and
Ethnology.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Genevieve Fisher
Registrar
Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology
Harvard University
11 Divinity Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
P: 617-495-4298
F: 617-495-7535
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
On Wed, 25 Feb 1998, Edward Rodley wrote:
> >>Unfortunately...no. When we redesigned The Barnum Museum in the late '80s,
> >>we would have given plenty for the Fejee Mermaid; but it had been gone for
> >>more than a century. (However, reports that it is indeed in Bridgeport may
> >>offer some clue as to how fakes, forgeries, and rumors get their "legs.")
> >
> >About 15 years ago, when touring the collections storage area of the
> >Peabody Museum at Harvard University, I saw a construct that the curator
> >said was Barnum's Fejee Mermaid. If you are trying to locate it, you might
> >want to try there.
> >
> >Susan Wageman
> >Grants and Research Manager [log in to unmask]
> >The Tech Museum of Innovation (408) 279-7178
> >145 West San Carlos Street fax (408) 279-7149
> >San Jose, CA 95113 USA http://www.thetech.org
>
> They were pretty common items in the mid 1800s. Apparently, Japanese
> fishermen would make these beasts out of monkey and fish parts and sell
> them to Western sailors as curiosities. The Peabody has a couple, if
> memory serves. I also recall seeing one in Baltimore at the late, great
> Peale Museum.
>
> ___________________________________________________________
> Edward Rodley email: [log in to unmask]
>
> Exhibit Planner ph: 617.589.0296
> Museum of Science, fax: 617.742.2246
> Boston, MA
> ___________________________________________________________
>
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