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Goldfish in the Parlour : The Victorian craze for marine life / Simons, John.

Goldfish in the Parlour : The Victorian craze for marine life / Simons, John.
Catalogue Information
Field name Details
ISBN 9781743328729
Author Simons, John (author)
Title Goldfish in the Parlour : The Victorian craze for marine life / Simons, John.
Publisher and/or associated date/s Sydney, NSW : Sydney University Press, 2023.
Description xiii, 296 pages, 9 unnumbered pages plates: illustrations ; 21 cm.
Summary 'For the first time, fish became our companions and a corner of many a Victorian parlour was given over to housing tiny fragments of their world enclosed in glass.' The experience of seeing a fish swimming in a glass tank is one we take for granted now but in Victorian England this was a remarkable sight. People had simply not been able to see fish as they could with the invention of the aquarium and everything that went with it. Goldfish in the Parlour looks at the Victorian-era boom in the building of public aquariums, as well as the craze for home aquariums and visiting the seaside. Furthermore, this book considers how people see and meet animals and, importantly, in what institutions and in what contexts these encounters happen. John Simons uncovers the sweeping consequences of the Victorian obsession with marine animals by looking at naturalist Frank Bucklandâs Museum of Economic Fish Culture and the role of fish in the Victorian economy, the development of angling as a sport divided along class lines, the seeding of Empire with British fish and comparisons with aquarium building in Europe, USA and Australia. Goldfish in the Parlour interrogates the craze that took over Victorian England when aquariums 'introduced' fish to parks, zoos and parlours.
Subjects Fish -- Australia
Natural history -- Australia
Social history -- Australia
Ichthyology
Social history -- Australia -- 19th century
Call number 2023.042
Catalogue Information 100083020 Beginning of record . Catalogue Information 100083020 Top of page .
Item Information
Barcode Shelf Location Collection Volume Ref. Status Due Date
A00964503 2023.042
General Collection   . Available to Museum Staff .  
. Catalogue Record 100083020 ItemInfo Beginning of record . Catalogue Record 100083020 ItemInfo Top of page .