During this period collecting and mounting of both taxidermy birds and animals was undertaken on a commercial scale. Routinely specimens were collected from the wild in a random fashion. Birds, chicks and eggs were taken for scientific purposes and arranged in as natural representation as possible. It is however interesting to observe, when “stuffers” obtained specimens that they did not observe in the wild, and the almost comical presenting of what was meant to be both a natural pose and environment. Thankfully these individuals were in the minority. For the best examples of antique taxidermy to survive that era, it is best to observe the works by:

• Henry Ward
• Rowland Ward
• Peter Spicer
• William Hutchings
• James Gardner

Above are just my personal view of who created the best cases, you may feel free to disagree. However during the above period, almost every small town in the UK has a resident taxidermist plying their trade as a side line to more conventional employment.
They heyday of this form of taxidermy display was realistically from around 1875- until 1920. Companies such as Rowland Ward, Peter Spicer continued after that period, but interest in Victoriana, was superseded by Art Deco, and therefore cases of dead animals seemed to have no place. It was not until 1970 onwards did there appear to be resurgence in this subject and today taxidermy historical cases produced by the great firms now command thousands of pounds and are now collected widely.
It is interesting to note however that these items were never cheap in their heyday and I suppose that given their notional value now, it might not represent a good investment, when you take into account the “time value of money” principle.
Given the resurgence, brought about in part by the disposal of the Jamaica Inn collection mainly produced by Victorian Taxidermist Walter Potter of Bramber in West Sussex. This collection was sold for around £475,000.


America Taxidermy

The origins of taxidermy can be traced back to the ancient practice of preserving trophies from the hunt. But its modern development arose from the interest in natural science that emerged during the 17th century. In the 19th century taxidermy became firmly established as a museum art in such commercial houses as Maison Verreaux in Paris and Ward's Natural Science Establishment in Rochester, N.Y.
One of the most noted American experts in the field was Carl E. Akeley (1864-1926), who first worked at Ward's before moving on to the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. He is credited with developing the taxidermic method of mounting museum displays to show how animals looked in their natural surroundings. He did this by showing animals in positions suggesting great activity; he also used real or artificial vegetation and painted backgrounds to give an idea of habitat. Akeley's goal was to use taxidermy to create a panorama of Africa and its big game in museums across the United States. His method of mounting skin on a finely molded replica of the body of an animal yielded results with a degree of realism that had not been created before. His contributions elevated taxidermy from a craft to an art form.

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