Glasgow and Audubon: 200 years of The Birds of America

In 1838 the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow purchased two first edition volumes of John James Audubon’s masterpiece, The Birds of America, for the benefit of their members and fellows. The new permanent exhibition in the College Library tells their story and reveals Audubon’s stunning work over 200 double elephant folio sized pages (99cm x 66 cm). But why did a medical royal college buy these books and why, given that Audubon when in Scotland spent most of his time in Edinburgh, do we now have so many other first editions of The Birds of America in Glasgow and Paisley? In this new talk find out the answers to these questions, and what Audubon really thought of Glasgow.

Claire McDade is the Heritage Lead for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. She was born and studied in Glasgow and has over 30 years’ experience of working in museums and heritage institutions around the UK. She has worked at the Royal College since 2023 and curated the Audubon exhibition