Jean Baptiste Édouard Verreaux (16 September 1810 – 14 March 1868) was a French

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

taxidermist Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the process ...

, collector, and dealer. Botanist and

ornithologist Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...

Jules Verreaux Jules Pierre Verreaux (24 August 1807 – 7 September 1873) was a French botanist and ornithologist and a professional collector of and trader in natural history specimens. He was the brother of Édouard Verreaux and nephew of Pierre Antoine Delal ...

was his older brother.

Career

In 1830, Verreaux travelled to South Africa to help his brother pack up a large consignment of specimens. He returned in 1832 before continuing to

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

, the

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and

Indo-China Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...

. In 1834, he took control of the family's

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

business in Paris.

''Lion Attacking a Dromedary''

Verreaux designed and constructed the orientalist

taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proces ...

diorama A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional model either full-sized or miniature. Sometimes dioramas are enclosed in a glass showcase at a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies like mili ...

'' Lion Attacking a Dromedary'' for the Paris Exposition of 1867, where it won a gold medal. After the exposition, it was sold to the

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located in Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 21 interconn ...

, who exhibited it at the 1876

Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition, officially the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876. It was the first official wo ...

. The diorama was sold to the

Carnegie Museum of Natural History The Carnegie Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as CMNH) is a natural history museum in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded by List of people from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, Pit ...

in 1898, where it was displayed until its removal in 2020. The museum cited the work's lack of cultural accuracy and concerns raised by the

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

movement as the reasons for the removal. In 2021, the diorama was put back on display at the Pittsburgh museum.

Associated writings

* ''L'Océanie en Estampes, ou description géographie et historique de toutes les Îles du grand océan et du continent de la Nouvelle Hollande ...'' (with Jules Verreaux), 1832 – Prints of Oceania, or geographical and historical description of all the islands of the Pacific Ocean and the continent of New Holland. * ''Catalogue des objets d'histoire naturelle : composant le cabinet de Mm. Veraux, pére et fils, naturalistes préparateurs, boulevard Montmartre, No. 6'', 1833 – Cataloged objects of

, component of the firm Veraux, father and son, preparer-naturalists, Boulevard Montmartre, No. 6. * ''Catalogue d'oiseaux'', 1849 – Catalog of birds. * ''Catalogue des Oiseaux disponibles dans la maison d'E. Verreaux'', 1868 – Catalog of birds found in the house of E. Verreaux.WorldCat Identities
(publications)

References

Verreaux, Edouard Verreaux, Edouard Verreaux, Edouard Verreaux, Edouard Taxidermists {{France-zoologist-stub