Museum of the Earth
Borg Warner Temporary Exhibition Gallery
February 2 - June 7, 2009
Carl A. Kroch Library at Cornell University
Hirshland Exhibition Gallery
February 9 - August 16, 2009
To celebrate the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin and the 150th anniversary of the publication of Origin of Species, Museum of the Earth and the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Carl A. Kroch Library, Cornell University and are hosting a collaborative exhibition: Charles Darwin: After the Origin. Under the guidance of guest curator and Darwinian scholar, Dr. Shelia Ann Dean, both venues, explore Charles Darwin's life and work in the twenty-two years following the publication of the Origin of Species in 1859.
Studying everything from botany to earthworms, Darwin continued extensive biological work throughout his later life, although that work has received far less attention than the work that informed Origin of Species. Darwin was drawn to unusual natural phenomena, and when his curiosity was piqued by an interesting specimen he would bring the subject home to Down House to look at it even more closely. Darwin asked questions, formed hypotheses, and ran experiments. He immersed himself completely in the complexity of his subjects and their processes. Across his wide range of interests and expertise, he was always thinking as an evolutionist, wondering how an animal or plant had originated and how it was related to others and to life in general.
The exhibition focuses specifically on seven of Darwin's publications that occurred after the Origin. All seven continued to support the theories he laid out in his seminal book.
The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication (1868.)
On the Various Contrivances by which British and Foreign Orchids are Fertilised by Insects (1862)
The Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants (1875)
Insectivorous Plants (1875)
The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (1871)
The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872)
The Formation of Vegetable Mould, Through the Action of Worms (1881)
Join Museum of the Earth and the Cornell University Library in an engaging look at the last decades of Darwin's life.
Charles Darwin: After the Origin is on display now at Museum of the Earth until June 7, 2009.To visit our online exhibition please click here: Charles Darwin: After the Origin
