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Post by trehopr1 on Jan 21, 2016 17:45:36 GMT
I am curious to know if my British friends could tell us something of this Saruman museum. It seems to be associated in some manner with Paul Smart. Was it a local regional museum near his home ? Does it still exist ? Was it dissolved and re-appropriated elsewhere ? So many questions.... It sounds more like a topic that our detective member Nomad could write an article about !
I know in Paul Smart's book he showed a photo of an open drawer of Colias in a gorgeous wood cabinet which he mentioned was from the Saruman museum.
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Post by bobw on Jan 21, 2016 18:42:29 GMT
The Saruman Museum was basically a shop in Tunbridge Wells run by Paul Smart. He had some exhibits which enabled him to call it a museum, but it was basically a front for his dealing activities. During the 70s he moved to Bramber in Sussex and rather presumptuously changed the name to the National Butterfly Museum. He did have a lot of exhibits here and I guess the word "museum" was justified, but it was still mainly a front for his dealing activities. He sold everything at auction in 1983 (I believe), I went to the auction and many things sold for crazy amounts. More information can be found in John Tennent's paper quoted in the other thread by John Hyatt.
Bob
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Post by nomad on Jan 21, 2016 19:16:09 GMT
Paul Smart's Saruman Museum was originally at St Giles in the Wood, Beckley at Rye. His staff at that time was Trevor Scott, Chris Samson and interestingly his consultant was John Muirhead (See my post Mr Smith's Birdwing Butterflies). Both Paul Smart and his wife Gita along with Scott and Samson were F.R.E.S. Around 1977 Paul Smart bought St Mary's House at Bramber in Sussex. Charles II stayed here. The new Saruman Museum became known as the National Butterfly Museum. It was said that at the time Smart had the largest collection outside of the BMNH, perhaps an exaggeration but he certainly had perhaps the largest private collection. Smart had specimens caught by Wallace and his said his earliest specimen was caught in 1795. Smart also had one of the best entomological libraries full of rare books. Smart sold his house, museum and its massive collection at a Sotheby's sale in a damp marquee in 1983. Smart's ad, Record and Journal of Variation 1977.
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Post by nomad on Jan 21, 2016 19:25:18 GMT
I must add that Paul Smart always had the best set World butterflies for sale at his museum and at the English Insect fairs, especially birdwings. No one could compete with him for prices at the great 1970's entomological fairs of London and Leicester. London were then the largest World specimen insect fair but the conservation culture in Britain killed all of that, today the London fair is a very pale shadow of its former glory. I used to make straight for Smart's table and bought a number of A1 pairs of birdwings from him. His tables were always crowded and his specimens sold like hotcakes.
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Post by nomad on Jan 21, 2016 19:55:48 GMT
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Post by trehopr1 on Jan 21, 2016 21:36:40 GMT
Well it's nice to hear that some 3000 specimens of Paul Smart's collection wound up in the care of a museum. That is probably the largest assemblage of a his once fabulous collection found anywhere. The rest I'm sure has probably been dispersed to the four winds ---so to speak. Pity it was not kept more intact. Sounds like it had a good chunk of rarities present, a lot of beautifully spread material, and of coarse all those wonderfully pictured (documented) specimens from his book. Curious to know if any members possess any of those pictured specimens; what page they are on; and if we could see a photo of it. P.S. - Thank you Nomad for your input. I figured if anyone could find out some answers to my post it would be you. By the way, do you think it was Paul who prepared up his material so nicely or was it his curator(s) that did. Or did he simply re-sell nicely prepared stock from old collections he purchased?
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Post by Adam Cotton on Jan 21, 2016 21:52:50 GMT
I seem to remember that there was some issue with the 'museum' status conferring tax advantages compared to a normal business. Can someone confirm if this was the case?
Adam.
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Post by nomad on Jan 22, 2016 5:51:45 GMT
I believe it was his staff who prepared all of his butterflies, although he bought many old collections with lots of star specimens. My friend has the very rare Ornithoptera chimaera falvidior specimen pictured in Smart's book, that's the one that was sold to a guy in Australia and has ended up back in blighty.
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Post by nomad on Jan 22, 2016 6:10:57 GMT
I seem to remember that there was some issue with the 'museum' status conferring tax advantages compared to a normal business. Can someone confirm if this was the case? Adam. I believe Paul Smart may have had major tax problems because he sold very quickly. I believe that you have hit the nail on the head so to speak Adam but I cannot confirm that.
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Post by mygos on Jan 22, 2016 7:40:23 GMT
Peter, You are talking of an auction in 1983, but in the paper you mentionned from Robinson about Glasgow Museum, they are talking of 1985. I confirm this later date is the one, because I received the auction catalogue of this Saruman Museum where there was 2 lots (batch ?) of interesting Cymothoe boxes. As I could not attend the sale, I asked the wife of my UK boss (at that time) to attend the sale for me. Although I gave her the authorisation for very high bids, I was surpassed by the Allyn Museum of Entomology in Sarasota if I remember well. I have to look in my library this weekend as I have got this catalogue somewhere !
A+, Michel
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Post by nomad on Jan 22, 2016 10:01:32 GMT
Thanks Michel for confirming it was 1985, most sources mention 1983, I believe bob thought it was the latter year too. I did not attend the auction. I would love to see some pages from the auction catalogue here.
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Post by bobw on Jan 22, 2016 12:53:29 GMT
I have the catalogue from the auction here in front of me and the dates were "Wednesday 26th October 1983 and following day at 10.30 am". If I can find time in the next few days I'll try to scan a few pages and post them.
Paul bought up many old collections so a lot of what he bought was already set. However I remember Chis Samson spending hours setting specimens and seeing row upon row of setting boards drying. I doubt if Paul did any setting himself, it was probably beneath him.
I didn't know that the Glasgow museum had bought part of the collection. The stock was split into many lots and most went for very high prices to various private collectors. I particularly remember lot 885 "ORNITHOPTERA. A display collection of contrasting colour forms in the priamus group. Comprising: priamus (green) pair from Ambon, croesus (gold) pair from Halmaheira, and urvilleanus (blue) pair from the Solomons. Contained in a black and gold display box 22in. x. 10in. (6) (£70-90)." The box was a cheap cardboard one and at the time anyone could have put it together for about £50; it was bought by some fat businessman with his dolly-bird secretary and who clearly knew nothing about insects but wanted something pretty for his office wall - he paid £270 which was a lot of money in 1983! Nearly every lot went for at least double the estimate in the catalogue.
The star of the show however was a spectacular 15 drawer Gurney cabinet containing "The Smart British Butterfly Collection". This had no guideline price but eventually sold to an anonymous telephone bidder for £11,000. I'm not aware that anybody knew who the buyer was but some 10-15 years later all the specimens started to appear on an individual basis in Robert Gooden's catalogues. Presumably he bought the collection from the original buyer.
Bob
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Post by nomad on Jan 22, 2016 13:03:35 GMT
Very nice information Bob on the auction, so it was 1983. I wonder who got the Smart British lepidoptera collection and where it is now. I believe Paul Smart had a drawer full of genuine nominate dispar. I look forward to seeing some pages from the sales catalogue.
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Post by mygos on Jan 22, 2016 13:51:16 GMT
Very nice information Bob on the auction, so it was 1983. I wonder who got the Smart British lepidoptera collection and where it is now. I believe Paul Smart had a drawer full of genuine nominate dispar. I look forward to seeing some pages from the sales catalogue. Not everybody can be a Sherlok Holmes like you Peter and sorry for my mistake ! I will search the catalogue this weekend anyway ... A+, Michel
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Post by nomad on Jan 22, 2016 13:56:19 GMT
Thanks Michel but I needed a Mr Watson , as some sources said 1983 while others quote 1985, I was little confused myself. I look forward to seeing the catalogue. .
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