Palaeontologist Anning 'sick of fossils', letter says
NHMA letter by palaeontologist Mary Anning in which she says she is "sick" of fossils is the subject of a fundraising drive by a museum to buy it.
Anning's discoveries in the early 19th Century helped shape scientific understanding of prehistoric life but she was never fully credited for her discoveries due to the fact she was woman and because of her social status.
Lyme Regis Museum is aiming to raise £10,000 so it can bid at an upcoming Bonham's Auctions event and keep the rare artefact in her home town.
Dr Paul Davis, the geology curator at the museum, described it as an "unusual" document that gave a "real glimpse of her thoughts and feelings".
He told the BBC: "Basically she's saying 'I'm so worn out, I'm fed up of dealing with customers and I'm fed up with fossils' which is remarkable really."
The fossil hunter, who was played by Kate Winslet in a 2020 film, lived in Lyme Regis, part of what is now called the Jurassic Coast, and began searching the coastline as a child.
She was the first person to discover a complete plesiosaurus, in 1823.
The fragment, signed "Gratefully yours Mary Anning", consists of the last six lines of a letter.
She laments that she is "worn out after you saw me that I almost wish'd that I might never see a Lady again and the name of fossils makes me sick with its concominants [sic]".
A note beneath - in another 19th-Century hand - attributes the letter to the "celebrated Lyme Regis geologist" and on the reverse it says: "Miss Anning of Lyme Regis/The Celebrated Geologist".
Only two other autographed letters have been traced to Anning.
The recipient of the letter and the mysterious "Lady" that she seems frustrated with are not known.
"I have to say we've all probably been fed up in our job at one particular point... but here she's writing obviously to somebody she knows incredibly well to say those sorts of things," Dr Davis speculated.
He said most of the known Anning letters detailed business transactions.
"She's either got a fossil for sale or she's trying to extract money from somebody who's bought a fossil, or she's trying to promote the business," he explained.
"We've got nothing that really gives us an insight into Mary's thoughts or feelings, and there's no real personal letters, and this is just a tiny glimpse into her mindset at one particular time."
He added: "It would be a fantastic addition to the collection to try and inspire everybody about Mary, because being in Dorset most of us have heard of Mary's story, but children all over the country learn about Mary and it's a great way of getting kids into science.
"Mary is such a superstar. She's one of the top 10 scientists in the world as voted by the Royal Society.
"She has worldwide fame and followers and so therefore anything that is related to Mary has an immense cachet and desirability."
The auction takes place on 26 March.
The Friends of Lyme Regis Philpot Museum have so far raised more than £3,500.
