The golden age (1862–1910) of the Zoological Section of the Museu Nacional de Lisboa (National Museum of Lisbon), Portugal

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of the organization and first decades of the Zoological Section of the Museu Nacional de Lisboa (National Museum of Lisbon), under the leadership of José Vicente Barbosa du Bocage (1823–1907), a Portuguese zoologist who attained international recognition. The article discusses the contributions made by a small community of zoologists, who joined transnational networks and gave projection to the institution by founding and disseminating the first Portuguese journal exclusively devoted to scientific research, the Jornal de sciencias mathematicas, physicas e naturaes, in which they published their original research. The animal collections of the Zoological Section were unique in that they had numerous specimens of previously unknown Southwestern African birds and reptiles, most of which were sent by José de Anchieta, who extensively travelled across the Angolan hinterland. From its inception, the museum was tied to a higher education institution, the Escola Politécnica de Lisboa (Lisbon Polytechnic School), and also fulfilled a pedagogical function. Although the Zoological Section survived the death of its founder, being renamed Museu Bocage (Bocage Museum) in 1905, it failed to gain more autonomy in subsequent decades, becoming a constrained institution that lacked premises and personnel to meet its rising demands. After a fire that destroyed almost all its specimens in 1978, the recently reformed Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência (National Museum of Natural History and Science) is trying to write a new chapter by honouring its long history.