The dispersal of Vivian Vaughan Davies Hewitt’s collection of great auk (Pinguinus impennis) eggs

Abstract

Private collectors and museums have coveted the eggs and skins of the great auk ( Pinguinus impennis) both before and after the species became extinct in 1844. Because of their monetary and scientific value, the provenance of most great auk eggs and skins is well documented. In the 1930s and 1940s one wealthy collector, Vivian Vaughan Davies Hewitt (1888–1965) amassed no fewer than thirteen great auk eggs (of a total of about 75 known) and four mounted skins (of 78 known). After he died in 1965, the skins and five of the eggs were sold through the dealer Spink & Son Ltd, but the remaining eight eggs remained unsold until 1992 when they were purchased by Dr John Alan (“Jack”) Gibson (1926–2013) of Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, Scotland. Gibson informed several individuals that he intended to donate the eggs to the National Museum of Scotland. This did not happen, however, and the fate of these eggs has, until now, been unclear and undocumented. We present some details of how Gibson acquired and later disposed of the eight great auk eggs, and, where known, their current whereabouts.