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Hunterian Museum
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Free entry - booking recommended

Tuesday to Saturday: 10am – 5pm

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Oil painting depicting a fictional examination scene incorporating portraits of several senior members of the Court of Examiners from the late 1800s. Three viva voce interviews are taking place in the room: in each, a young candidate sits at a table covered in anatomical and pathological specimens, and is being quizzed by a pair of examiners. In the background on the left of the painting the examiners are Edward Lund (1823-1898) and Sir William MacCormac (1825-1901): Lund is writing notes while MacCormac sits with his left hand on his ear as the candidate studies the pot in front of him. In the centre and foreground of the painting a second candidate is being examined by John Wood (1825-1891) and Sir Jonathan Hutchinson (1828-1913). The candidate - a young man with short dark hair and a dark moustache - is holding a specimen up to the light and regarding it quizzically. Wood, seated behind the table and positioned in the centre of the scene, is leaning forward with his head resting on his right hand and his elbow on the table: he is staring at the candidate intently, but his face and his posture convey a sense of weariness and exasperation. To Wood's left (and the viewer's right) Hutchinson is sitting back and regarding the candidate more dispassionately. Behind Wood and Hutchinson, in the background on the right of the painting, John Marshall (1818-1891) and Frederick Le Gros Clark (1811-1892) are examining a third candidate. On the wall of the room behind this scene is a central fireplace, above which the lower part of the portrait of John Hunter is visible. To the left, part of the portrait of Anthony Carlisle can be seen, while to the right the lower portion of the portrait of Astley Cooper is visible.

The Viva by Henry Jamyn Brooks, 1894

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Museum Hire

The Hunterian Museum is available to hire out-of-hours for private tours, for filming or as an add on to an event you are holding at RCS England. 

Private tours out-of-hours

Fee on application

Private tours are not available during museum open hours. You will need to make a request using the form below to hire the museum out-of-hours. For guided tours the maximum number of people is 20 per tour. Please allow longer if your party is larger than 20 for a second tour to begin.

Meetings, parties, or lectures

The Hunterian Museum does not have spaces for meetings, parties, or lectures. Please contact Royal College of Surgeons of England's venue hire team to book a space. If you would like a private tour as an add on to a room booking please see above.

Filming

Fee on application

If you would like to film at the Hunterian Museum please contact the museum before filling in the form to check availability for the dates you want, however you will need to use the form to make an official request.

Availability

You are welcome to contact the museum before filling in the form to check availability for the dates you want, however you will need to use the form to make an official request.