How To Dissect An Elephant (An Animal of Considerable Bigness) - Talk by Andy Drummond

Audio recording of a talk in the D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum on 21 May 2024.
When an elephant collapsed and died just outside Broughty Ferry in 1706, local surgeon Patrick Blair decided to dissect it. In doing so, he made a name for himself in British scientific circles. But the expired elephant had travelled a long way before it reached the shores of the Tay - touring more than half-way round Europe for two decades.
Andy Drummond, author of the book Elephantina, now presents for the very first time the full and unexpurgated history of the ‘Dundee Elephant’.
Expect to be entertained by rope-dancers and gun-toting elephants! Swoon at the sight of 260 bones and a slippery pile of internal organs! Be appalled by the behaviour of London impresarios and the deviousness of Edinburgh lawyers! Applaud the achievements of Patrick Blair, honoured son of Dundee!