the-BA : Richard Owen: Dinosaur Man

Richard Owen - Courtesty of Lancashire County Museum Service

This month marks the two hundredth anniversary of the birth of Sir Richard Owen, the Lancashire-born scientist who went on to become President of the BA back in 1858. Born on 20 July, 1804, Owen was the founder and visionary behind Natural History Museum in London, though he also publicly disputed Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. However, Owen is best known as the man who coined the word 'dinosaur', meaning 'fearfully great lizard'. He first used the expression in the report of the 1841 Annual Meeting of the BA (then known by its full title of British Association for the Advancement of Science).

To commemorate this anniversary, a plaque will be unveiled at Owen’s birthplace on 17 July, and Lancaster City Museum currently has an exhibition entitled “Richard Owen: Dinosaur Man”, which runs until 23 December.

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