Birds
Like most large, well-established museums, the Ulster Museum has inherited a substantial collection of mounted birds, reflecting the popularity of the art of taxidermy with our Victorian forebears.
By the mid-1800s, three firms of taxidermists were flourishing in Belfast, the most famous of the trio being that of James Sheals, established in 1856. James was later joined in the business by his two sons, Alfred and Thomas. The Sheals family produced some of the finest mounted birds and mammals in the world at that time.
The Museum’s Sciences collections include more than 1,000 mounted birds, many of which were prepared by Alfred and his brother Thomas. On the base of most of their mounts they routinely noted details of where, when and how the bird had died. Such information is now very useful, since many species have since become rare or even extinct in Ireland.
Highlights: Objects of Desire Online Tour (Juvenile Bald Eagle)
Image: Female Blue-fronted Amazon Parrot, died 1 June 1917 (William Crawford Collection)