Captain Cook's third voyage items 'saved from skip' on display after being lost for 40 years

Shells from Captain James Cook's third voyage thought to be lost for more than 40 years will be put on display after it was revealed they were in fact saved from a skip.

The collection, containing more than 200 specimens including an extinct species and several believed to have been sent back from Cook’s ill-fated voyage, will be on public display for the first time in more than 100 years.

The items had been thrown out by a university but were rescued from the skip by a retired scientist.

The collection, which serves as a record of Britain’s role in global trade and its colonial reach in the late 18th century, was the passion of Bridget Atkinson (1732-1814).

She never left Britain, and rarely left Cumbria, but amassed more than 1,200 shells from across the globe.

The collection was inherited by her grandson, John Clayton (1792-1890), before being sold along with the Clayton estate in 1930.

Some 200 of the artefacts remained on display at Chesters Roman Fort and Museum in Northumberland and were subsequently loaned to the zoology department of Armstrong College, now Newcastle University.

But, in the 1980s, the shells were thrown out during an office clear-out at the university.

It was feared they had been lost forever, but it has now been revealed that a passing lecturer, Dr John Buchanan, plucked them back out of the skip.

They have now been donated to English Heritage by the Buchanan family and returned to the museum, where they have been reunited with a giant clam which was previously the only remaining piece in the collection.

Dr Buchanan’s family said: “Our father was a marine zoologist and senior lecturer from 1958 until his retirement, based at the Dove Marine Laboratory in Cullercoats.

“He rescued the collection as he believed in conservation, and the shells remained in our family home for 35 years.

“Following the death of our mother, we discovered that the shells were part of the Clayton Collection. We were delighted to return the collection to English Heritage for future generations to enjoy.”

Dr Frances McIntosh, English Heritage’s collections curator for the North East, added: “We’ve always known about Bridget Atkinson’s collection but had believed it completely lost.

“To discover that the shells have not only survived but been kept safe and loved all this time is nothing short of a miracle.

“Bridget Atkinson was a remarkable woman, with a real curiosity about the natural world.

“At a time when women generally collected shells to decorate their furniture and grottos with, Bridget was collecting them for their scientific and geographical interest rather than their aesthetics.

“As well as being a testament to Bridget’s character and contacts, this collection is also a superb record of Britain’s role in global trade in the late 18th century, not to mention human impact on the natural world.”

The collection will be back on display at Chesters Roman Fort and Museum from Wednesday 13 March.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...