Blaschka Case (281)
This display tells the story of two remarkable lampworkers, Leopold Blaschka and his son Rudolf, who created in glass thousands of models of invertebrates (animals without backbones), as well as flowers and plants. The father began the business of making glass models of jellyfish, octopi, and other animals without backbones in order to supply a worldwide need at the then new natural history museums. The Blaschkas began to make glass models that faithfully replicated the natural creatures down to the smallest detail, in order to supply colleges and schools with teaching aids. Subsequently, when Harvard University was beginning to plan its new botany museum, the Blaschkas provided equally realistic models of flowers, plants, leaves, and fruits for instruction in Harvard’s growing biological sciences programs.