Shell Collection in Scarborough
Many of us will have wandered along the North and South Bays of Scarborough.
We might have collected shells as part of the seaside experience.
Yet Scarborough is known to be one of the locations for an impressive shell collection, part of the Scarborough Collections.
The Bean Family are connected with this collection, along with other local dignitaries.
William Bean of the 1700s was an entrepreneur and his son, also called William (1787 to 1866) inherited enough to give him financial independence and pursue his interest in natural sciences.
This second-generation William Bean was a keen conchologist, or collector of shells (discovering the Scarborough Snail) and a geologist.
He had connections to William ‘Strata’ Smith (1769 to 1839), known as the Father of Geology: he created the first geological map of England and Wales.
Theakston’s Guide to Scarborough, dated 1845, has the following description of Bean’s collection:
“ … the best collection of British shells in the kingdom, is thrown open for public inspections … during the season when all strangers are kindly admitted on being property introduced.”
His son, again called William (1817 to 1864) was a keen botanist.
Meanwhile his daughter, Maria, also collected shells and coins.
She donated them to the Rotunda, which opened in 1829, two years after the nearby Spa Bridge opened.
Maria was a member of the Scarborough Philosophical Society.
Women at the time were not permitted to engage in their scientific activities but were able to donate objects and money.
Another female who donated to the museum was a Miss Currer of Eshton Hall near Skipton.
She was a famous book collector and donated large sums of money to the Philosophical Society.
It is though Charlotte Bronte used Miss Currer’s name as her pseudonym.
Eshton is also one of the character names in Charlotte’s most famous novel, Jane Eyre.
The Rotunda has an excellent selection of items on display.