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A composite image of Mary Anning, William Buckland, Janet Watson and William Smith, with extract from pleisosaur and 1815 geological map

Online Exhibitions

Enjoy highlights from our collections, focusing on important figures in the history of geology

Portrait of Mary Anning (1850)

Mary Anning and the Geological Society

One of the most popular and important figures in the history of geology is the fossil collector and dealer Mary Anning (1799-1847). Her extraordinary discoveries, mainly found within a relatively small geographical area, were paramount to our understanding (and reconstruction) of life 200 million years ago. Anning was never a member of the Geological Society, however this exhibition uncovers her presence and influence in our collections through her direct and indirect relationships with our Fellows.
Detail of the portrait of William Smith

William 'Strata'Smith

The civil engineer and geologist William Smith (1769-1839) is best known today for producing the first ever geological map of a country in 1815. Bringing together the Society's rare and unique William Smith items, this exhibition is a celebration of his achievements in the field of geology which laid the basis of the science we know today – and led to him rightfully being known as ‘The Father of English Geology’.
1st edition of Greenough's Geological map of England and Wales (1820)

Making Maps

George Bellas Greenough’s (1778-1855) mapping of the British Isles

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Satirical cartoon 'Monster Soup' by William Heath (1828)

Monster Soup

How the search for a clean water supply in London led to the birth of hydrogeology

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Interior of Brunel's Thames Tunnel 1838

The Thames Tunnels

Brunel's Tunnel and the two previous attempts to build a tunnel under the Thames

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Mouth of Brixham Cave

Brixham Cave

The importance of Brixham Cave in proving the Antiquity of Man

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Detail of a Geologists' Association trip to Leith Hill (GA-BGS copyright)

The First Women

A celebration of the centenary of Female Fellowship in 2019

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Detail of Charles Moore in his Free Museum, Bath

Charles Moore

The life and work of the amateur geologist and fossil collector Charles Moore (1815-1881)

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Silhouette of Mary Buckland

Women and Geology

The contributions of women to the science of geology in the early 19th century.

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First World War Centenary logo (Imperial War Museum)

WW1 Roll of Honour

Geological Society Fellows who lost their lives in World War One

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Watercolour of the Egerton fish collection LDGSL/616/2/97

Agassiz's fossil fish

Unusual items from the Louis Agassiz fossil fish collection

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Portrait of Lewis Fermor

Lewis Leigh Fermor

The diary of Sir Lewis Leigh Fermor's (1880-1954) first seasons in India, 1902-1904

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Detail of the painting British Association at Newcastle, 1838

Portrait collection

Introduction to the major portraits and busts which can be found around the Geological Society's apartments.

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