A recreation of the philosopher Jeremy Bentham is to leave its home at a British university to travel to the United States – fulfilling his wish 180 years after he died.
His skeleton, wax head, clothes, hat, chair and walking stick is to leave University College London and to go on display at the Met Breuer museum in New York from March to July.
Bentham will be part of The Met’s exhibition, ‘Like Life: Sculpture, Color and the Body, 1300-now’, which will document 700 years of sculptural practice from 14th century Europe to the present.
Jeremy Bentham asked for his ‘auto-icon’ to be constructed after his death
The eccentric philosopher is preserved at an exhibit in University College London
Bentham was renowned as an eccentric and his cat was a member of the Church of England
It was always Bentham’s ambition to go to America but one he never achieved but he will be a centrepiece in a glass case alongside masterpieces and little-seen works.
The philosopher was known for his eccentricity and was in the habit of giving names to things, so he called his walking stick Dapple, or Dobbin,
His cat was a member of the Church of England and was known as the Reverend John Langhorne.
Advice has been taken from specialist art transporters for shipping Bentham’s auto-icon to the Met Breuer museum in New York
Before his death on June 6 1832 he laid down in his will the terms of his continued ‘life’.
When he passed away his skeleton and head were preserved and stored in a wooden cabinet called the ‘Auto-icon’, with the skeleton padded out with hay and dressed in his clothes
Now, to ready him for the departure next month he has undergone a full inspection and spring clean.
His preserved body, which is normally seated in the South Cloisters and is said to be UCL’s most popular museum exhibit, has been stripped down to his underwear for the first time for more than 20 years.
It is thought the only time before that may have been during the war.
In doing so, it has revealed secrets only museum conservators from UCL’s past knew.
Jayne Dunn, who as Head of Collections Management at UCL masterminded the operation, said: ‘There are two central support rods which run down either side of the spine that hold the skeleton together.
Staff at UCL used the opportunity to examine his clothes and found that his underwear had been preserved
The skeleton was padded with linen towm which resembles wood wool, and held in place by a large stockinet over the body
‘All the limbs hang from that central armature. Each bone is tied to the next bone by a complicated steel net and pins. All of it was done by the original people after his death.
‘He is wearing the original underwear – which has not got infested – and two sets of stockings, one over the other. That might have been the fashion then. Over the top he has a vest which is the original.’
French artist Jacques Talrich was enlisted to create a wax head, which he did working from the discoloured original and a bronze medallion
The skeleton is padded with linen tow, which resembles wood wool, held in place by a large stockinet over the body which was replaced in the 1990s after being damaged by an infestation.
It is thought the original jacket and trousers were also replaced in the Second World War by UCL curator Violette Lafleur after being eaten by pests.
‘Carpet beetles love wool but they are less keen on linen which is why we think the vest, underpants and stockings have survived,’ said Dunn.
‘We don’t want to send an object to another museum and infect their collection with pests. The first thing we had to do was to discover whether he was suffering from any infestations. If he had been we would have had to fumigate him,’ said Dunn.
Bentham’s stuffing had also lost its shape with a large lump protruding from his back which required remedial work.
Advice has been taken from specialist art transporters on the safest way to pack Bentham. He is to be placed on his back in a seated position to minimise stress on the fragile bones.
‘They recommended we should put him in a seated position to cause less stress to his bones. His pelvis is the weakest point. The wiring, which we think is original, is also very fragile,’ said Dunn.
One crate, shaped inside like a chair, will be used for Bentham, while a separate crate will carry his coat as well as his hat, wax head, chair and cane – all of which are thought to be the originals.
Emilia Kingham, a UCL conservator, specialising in human remains, natural history and wet specimens, will travel with the crated auto-icon to New York.
Bentham had originally hoped his head would be retained on his body but the preserving process, when it was suspended over sulphuric acid to melt the brain, resulted in grotesque discolouration of the face.
The French artist Jacques Talrich was enlisted to create a wax head, which he did working from the discoloured original and a bronze medallion.
The head which has the glass eyes went on display last year for the first time in decades as part of an exhibition at UCL looking at death and preservation. The exhibition is to close with a wake on February 15, Bentham’s 270th birthday, where eight people will present three-minute provocations considering his legacy and the nature of death.
The UCL team has also taken the opportunity provided by the preparation to carry out tests including taking a DNA sample from his finger bone tips.
Previous anaylsis of a sample from his tooth has shown he had good oral health, potentially the result of having a good dentist.
The exhibition at the Met is being curated by Luke Syson, previously a curator at the British museum and National Gallery.
Bentham is seen as a key element in the exhibition, which will explore the use of wax as the most favoured way of expressing flesh whether for entertainment or scientific purposes.