Memoirs of the Queensland Museum – Culture 13

The more beautiful and gorgeous birds of British New Guinea

Philp, J.

Published online: 2 April 2024

Authors

Philp, J.

Citation

Philp, J. 2022. The more beautiful and gorgeous birds of British New Guinea. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum – Culture 13: 75–108. Brisbane. https://doi.org/10.17082/j.2205-3239.13.1.2022.2022-03

Date published

September 2022

DOI

https://doi.org/10.17082/j.2205-3239.13.1.2022.2022-03

Keywords

natural history, collecting, New Guinea, colonialism, MacGregor, ornithology, contact history.

Abstract

This chapter describes the ways that collections were made in British New Guinea during Sir William MacGregor’s tenure (1888–1898) through a focus on the people employed in field collecting for bird specimens. It makes explicit the involvement of local peoples and other specialist collectors living in the region at the time. The creation of the collections was thus through two knowledge systems: that of western science and those of British New Guinean peoples. The influence of locals and other people is evident in the shape of the collection and the kinds of birds acquired. I argue that the curation of the bird specimens at Queensland Museum divorced specimens from the human contexts which contributed to reinforcing the hierarchical colonial structure. Despite this, examination of the collection’s composition shows the focus on ‘beautiful and gorgeous’ species which emphasises the knowledge of British New Guinea’s people and reveals the larger and more complex sphere of social relations that were a feature of MacGregor’s tenure.