[BCMA] The Collectors: the first comprehensive history of the Royal BC Museum

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

October 18, 2018

A new book with a retrospective look at
the long-lived Royal BC Museum and Archives

VICTORIA, BC-Every serious museum is passionate about collecting, and it turns out that in the Royal BC Museum's early days, its first curator, Dr. John Fannin, made a public plea for British Columbians to send him natural history specimens-dead or alive-to help build its nascent collection.

The range of animals delivered to the museum's doorstep is just one of the fascinating details readers will encounter in the Royal BC Museum's latest publication, The Collectors: A History of the Royal British Columbia Museum and Archives, by noted BC historian Patricia Roy.

The Collectors is the first comprehensive history of the Royal British Columbia Museum.  The tome tells a story of continuity, change, quirks, curiosities, and the fascinating characters who have shaped one of British Columbia's most distinguished institutions.

"This is a history worthy of any of the great museums of the world," said Prof. Jack Lohman, CEO of the Royal BC Museum. "The Collectors describes the accumulated history of the Royal BC Museum, the collaborative research that underpins it and the many ways people have connected to it."

"The Royal BC Museum is a cultural treasure," said Lisa Beare, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture. "This new book, The Collectors, provides a unique journey into the museum, from its early beginnings to the present day. I'm happy to know that British Columbians and visitors from across the country and around the world will have the chance to learn more about our remarkable museum through this book."

"Whale skeletons, spores only visible under a microscope; giant totem poles and tiny argillite carvings; a schoolhouse and the original instructions to Governor James Douglas: all are in the collections of the Royal British Columbia Museum," said Roy.  "The Collectors is the behind-the-scenes story of how the museum acquired them, preserves and studies them, and makes them available to British Columbians and their visitors."

The Collectors begins in 1886 and covers the most significant achievements, hurdles and shifts in the museum and archives' histories, concluding with events in 2017.

The 13 chapters of the 567 page book reflect both chronological eras and major themes, such as the Royal BC Museum's early concentration on collecting and classifying, its historic support of and partnership with First Nations in BC and its attempts to break the collections out of the museum's walls and share its knowledge, collections and programs with the rest of the province.

The book's tone is scholarly and its contents appropriate for an academic audience, and any serious student of BC history would likely enjoy this comprehensive history.

The Collectors is illustrated throughout with black and white photographs. Some of the archival photographs will be familiar to members of the public who engage with the Royal BC Museum on its social media channels, but many of the images, sourced through diligent original research, will be entirely new to readers.

The Collectors, retailing for $39.95, is available through local bookshops, the Royal Museum Shop and online at https://publications.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/.

About the Royal BC Museum

The Royal BC Museum explores the province's human history and natural history, advances new knowledge and understanding of BC, and provides a dynamic forum for discussion and a place for reflection. The museum and archives celebrate culture and history, telling the stories of BC in ways that enlighten, stimulate and inspire. Located in Victoria on the traditional territory of the Lekwungen (Songhees and Xwsepsum Nations), we are a hub of community connections in BC-onsite, offsite and online-taking pride in our collective histories.


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Media contact:
Royal BC Museum Media Inquiries
250-387-5051
news at royalbcmuseum.bc.ca<mailto:news at royalbcmuseum.bc.ca>

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