Taxidermy case with birds and small animals

Object NameTaxidermy case with birds and small animals

Artist / Maker Lucy Parker Field Kimball (American, 1828 - 1923)

Date1870-1880

OriginUSA

Dimensions22 1/4 × 13 3/4 × 6 3/4 in. (56.5 × 34.9 × 17.1 cm)

ClassificationsFurniture

Credit LineGift of Richard and Lucy Graeme. In the Farm House Museum Collection, Farm House Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object number77.50.1

Status

Not on view

Collections

Label TextThe specimens in the case include a squirrel, mourning dove, 3 canaries, rose-breasted grosbeak, evening grosbeak, yellow-headed blackbird and eastern meadowlark. The bird cage showcases an activity engaged in by women and children. Taxidermy was a creative activity. The animal was gutted, then arsenic was rubbed into the inside of the carcass, the animal was stuffed with cotton and then set aside to dry. In Victorian times, it was a way to bring nature into the home. This display was done by Lucy Parker Field Kimball. The case contains birds of Iowa, with gophers and squirrels. This was done in the late 1860s or 70s. Lucy's granddaughter said that Lucy had used her taxidermy to earn money so she could buy a silver tea service. Two highly unique objects in the Farm House Museum are the taxidermy display cases. Though the practice appears macabre to many modern viewers, taxidermy--the art of preserving and displaying the skins of dead animals--was a popular exhibition of artistic skill and natural aesthetic in the Victorian era. Taxidermy was one way for a Victorian household to showcase its wealth and provide an educational display of local ecology. Perhaps surprisingly, Victorian-era taxidermy was an activity largely pursued by women. Both of the displays in the Farm House Museum were created and sold by Lucy B. Kimball in the 1870s. According to an 1860 publication of Art Recreations, women completed the entire taxidermy process, first removing the entrails and skin of the specimen, then using arsenic as a preserving agent on the skin, and finally using wire and wool to recreate the animal's shape.

Locations