Wonder-rooms and curiosity cabinets appeared in the 1500s, as wealthy Europeans displayed objects and specimens collected during trading voyages and exploring expeditions. Books-such as these-allowed scientists and collectors to share their observations.

From Beschreibung von allerley insecten in Teutsch-Land by Johann L. Frisch. Berlin, 1730-1753.		Dr. Clyde Roper studies illustrations of squids in old natural history books to clarify species identifications and to determine historical species distributions.

Ferrante Imperato (1550-1625) Dell'historia naturale . . . Naples: C. Vitale, 1599. 12 p. l., 791 p. illus., double plate. Naples pharmacist Ferrante Imperato (1550-1625) formed one of Europe’s first natural history research collections. Here, he and his son Francesco show it off to visitors. View enlarged images from this item: Image 1: small | large Ernest Ingersoll (1852-1946) Hand-book to the National Museum, under direction of the Smithsonian Institution New York, Chicago and Washington: Brentano Brothers, 1886. 110, [28] p. : ill. Congress established the United States National Museum in 1879 to house and display the growing collections of the Smithsonian Institution. View enlarged images from this item: Image 1: small | large Lorenzo Legati Museo Cospiano . . . Bologna: Per G. Monti, 1677. 11 p. l., 532 p. illus., fold. pl., port. Marchese Ferdinando Cospi (1606-1686) gave his collection to the city of Bologna in 1657 for the use of scholars. View enlarged images from this item: Image 1: small | large Ole Worm (1588-1654) Museum Wormianum; seu, Historia rerum rariorum, tam naturalium, quam artificialium, tam domesticarum, quam exoticarum . . . Leiden: ex officina Elseviriorum, 1655. 6 p. l., 389, [3] p. illus. Ole Worm (1588-1654), a doctor and professor of natural philosophy in Copenhagen, used his collection to teach students. View enlarged images from this item: Image 1: small | large

Crocodiles on the Ceiling || Collecting Wonders || One Part Arsenic