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Letters from Sir Robert Christison to William Sharpey

 Fonds
Identifier: Coll-2905

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection consists of four letters sent by Sir Robert Christison to William Sharpey, all from Edinburgh, dated 21 April [1837?], 16 December 1857, 25 December [1857?], and 20 October 1863.

  1. Edinburgh, 21 April, no year [1837?]: 2 pages, Octavo. Letter recommending the Glasgow-born chemist Thomas Graham to the Chair of Chemistry at the University of London.
  2. Edinburgh , 25 December, no year [1837?]: 3 pages, Octavo. Letter discussing experimentation on animals to prepare a drug. "You will see from my paper that 2.7 grains had a powerful effect on a rabbit; and I doubt not that a far less quantity would have been sufficient to kill that animal. Kölliker ... could not obtain any sign of action in the frog's case. But his extract was not prepared by me. It may have been overheated. Mine was prepared "secundum artem", exactly as I always prepare alcoholic extracts of powerful plants..."
  3. Edinburgh, 16 December 1857: 4 pages, Octavo. Letter concerning, among other things Albert von Kölliker's investigation of the poison of the upas tree (Antiaris) and the term "curare" introduced by Alexander von Humboldt, which is based on a corruption of the Native American term.
  4. Edinburgh, 20 October 1863: 4 pages, Octavo. Letter concerning the republication of Christison's Dispensatory, or Commentary on the Pharmacopaeias of Great Britain.

Dates

  • Creation: [1837]-1866

Creator

Language of Materials

English

Conditions Governing Access

Open. Please contact the repository in advance.

Full Extent

4 letters

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased in April 2025. Accession no. SC-Acc-2025-0057.

Processing Information

Catalogued by Aline Brodin in November 2025, using information supplied by the seller.

Related Names

Subjects

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Letters from Sir Robert Christison to William Sharpey, [1837]-1866
Author
Aline Brodin
Date
November 2025
Description rules
Isad(g)2
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the University of Edinburgh Library Heritage Collections Repository

https://library.ed.ac.uk/heritage-collections
Contact:
Centre for Research Collections
University of Edinburgh Main Library
George Square
Edinburgh EH8 9LJ Scotland
+44(0)131 650 8379