Historic Shell Collection from Captain Cook's Voyage Rediscovered After 40 Years

The collection, thought lost for decades, includes over 200 specimens and highlights the contributions of an 18th-century woman collector.

Shells collected during Captain Cook's final voyage, thought lost for 40 years, have been rediscovered and donated to English Heritage.
The collection was saved from a skip in the 1980s by marine zoologist Dr. John Buchanan and includes over 200 specimens, some from Cook's ill-fated third voyage.
Bridget Atkinson, an 18th-century collector with a passion for shells' scientific and geographical significance, originally amassed the collection.
The rediscovery sheds light on the roles of women in science and Britain's global trade and colonial reach in the late 18th century.
The collection, which also touches on colonialism and the transatlantic slave trade, will go on display in Northumberland.