The Heron-Allen Library at The Natural History Museum, London

Richard Hodgkinson stands guard during the installation of the HA library door.

[The official opening of the new Heron-Allen Library door will take place at the 2008 symposium on the 5th July. This door was originally Heron-Allen's from his library at Large Acres]

The Natural History Museum houses the scientific library of Edward Heron-Allen. It is probably the finest and most comprehensive holding of literature on the Foraminifera in the world. It was for his work of this group of beautiful single-celled, shelled organisms that Heron-Allen received the ultimate scientific accolade, of Fellow of the Royal Society of London (FRS) in 1919. The room, named in his honour, is situated in the Department of Palaeontology, and not only houses his books, reprints and ephemera, but also his vast foraminiferal collections, which today are visited by scientists from all over the world. Some indication of the value of Heron-Allen’s science and of the treasures which he bequeathed to The Natural History Museum in 1925 and subsequently, are given in two Opuscula of the Heron-Allen Society (IV: ‘“The Beauty and Mystery of the Foraminifera”. The foraminiferal research of Edward Heron-Allen FRS, with an assessment of his scientific career”’ by Richard. L. Hodgkinson & John E. Whittaker (2003) and VII: ‘“Edward Heron-Allen FRS: Scientist”: Proceedings of the 4th Heron-Allen Symposium, 2004’ edited by John E. Whittaker (2005)).

Visitors who wish to see the Heron-Allen Library and its contents are most welcome but are asked, first, to contact The Natural History Museum, and make an appointment (Monday- Friday, only). Contacts are: Clive Jones, tel. 0207-942-5580; or John Whittaker, tel 0207-942-5132.