Raffles, World's Most Famous Talking Bird (Exhibition)

Show/Hide All Variant Names

Exist Dates

1951 August 16 - unknown

Biographical or Historical Note

abstract
Exhibition. Opened August 16, 1951. Located in the Grand Gallery at the American Museum of Natural History. "Raffles, World's Most Famous Talking Bird" featured the mount of the Mynah bird known at Raffles.

Summary

"Raffles, World's Most Famous Talking Bird" featured the mount of the Mynah bird known at Raffles. During his lifetime, Raffles displayed talents that brought him international fame and was awarded the Lavender Heart for entertaining the wounded in veterans' hospitals and was guest soloist with the San Francisco Orchestra. Raffles died when he caught cold while performing at a veteran's hospital. He was presented to the Museum by explorers and authors Zetta and Carveth Wells, who found the bird in the Malayan jungle. Raffles was on view in the 77th Street Foyer of the American Museum of Natural History on August 16, 1951 after which he was installed in the Museum's permanent bird collection.

Individuals and institutions involved in the creation of the exhibition: John T. Zimmer, AMNH Curator of Birds.

Sources

    American Museum of Natural History Press Release, August 16, 1953. Departmental Records, 101; American Museum of Natural History Library Archives.

Terms

localDescription
temporary exhibition
localDescription
basic

Related Corporate, Personal, and Family Names

American Museum of Natural History. Grand Gallery.
Location of exhibition.

Written by: Roxanne Edwards
Last modified: 2019 February 1


Export

Content negotiation supports the following types: text/html, application/xml, application/tei+xml, application/vnd.google-earth.kml+xml, application/rdf+xml, application/json, text/turtle

Return to top

amnhc_5000707https://data.library.amnh.org/archives-authorities/org:Organizationosm