Academy Town Square: Presidential Hair: A Close Shave With History

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

6:30 PM-8:00 PM

Academy Curator of Art and Artifacts and Senior Fellow Robert Peck will discuss his new book, Specimens of Hair, at an Academy Town Square.

In the early 1800s Peter A. Browne, a Philadelphia lawyer and member of the Academy of Natural Sciences, assembled an extraordinary collection of wool, fur and hair. He hoped, in a pre-Darwinian world, to discover how animals were related to each other and what practical purposes their hair might serve. The remarkable collection, now housed at the Academy, also includes hair from well-known artists, writers, scientists, signers of the Declaration of Independence, and 13 of the first 14 U.S. presidents. Academy Curator of Art and Artifacts and Senior Fellow Robert McCracken Peck has written a new book, Specimens of Hair, on this fascinating subject and will give an illustrated talk at the Academy Town Square. Join us for this free event and get your book signed by the author.

Please click here to register.