| Title | Currie Collection |
|---|---|
| Description | This collection consists of around 5000 mineral specimens, including 25 meteorites and accounts for almost half of the Cockburn Museum’s mineral collection. It was donated to the university by the wife of Dr James Currie in 1931. Dr James Currie of Leith was a former student at the University of Edinburgh, before achieving the prestigious Bachelor of Arts degree in the Mathematical Tripos from the University of Cambridge. In 1919 he was awarded an honorary doctorate in law by the University of Edinburgh for his contribution to society. He was Vice President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, President of the Edinburgh Geological Society and a Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. Currie ran the Leith based family shipping line, J. Currie & Co. He was an expert descriptive and crystallographic mineralogist but his scientific interests also included archaeology and botany. Ownership of a shipping line provided Currie with opportunities for travel, allowing him to collect and purchase rare and fine specimens from classic and type localities all over the world. Currie’s particular interest was in the secondary minerals of basaltic rocks. The number and quality of Scottish and Faroes zeolites within the collection reflect this. He housed his collection in a museum at his Edinburgh home, Larkfield. |
| Custodian | Dr James Currie |
| Custodial History | Dr James Currie housed his collection of minerals in a museum at his Edinburgh home. It was donated to the university by Dr James Currie’s wife in 1931. |
| Origin | Edinburgh; Europe; Scotland; United Kingdom |
| Identifier | UNIVEDCLD023 |
| Parent Collection | Geology Collection |
Image: Image of mineral