Lorenzo Niles Fowler pottery phrenology head, £680 at Burstow & Hewett.
Most carry the name of Lorenzo Niles Fowler (1811-96), the foremost American ‘scientist of the mind’ who moved to London in 1863 and founded the Fowler Institute in Ludgate Circus.
Alongside a successful phrenological publishing business, he became famous for selling these model ceramic heads to accompany his books and weekly courses on practical phrenology. The transferprinted busts showed Fowler’s map of the head, detailing his interpretation of human character as defined by various areas of the skull.
Lorenzo Niles Fowler pottery phrenology head, £680 at Burstow & Hewett.
Two 12in (29cm) examples have been offered recently at regional auctions: one took £680 at Burstow & Hewett (20% buyer’s premium) in Battle on March 15, another £1100 as part of the extraordinary George Withers collection at Dore & Rees (25% buyer’s premium) in Frome on February 21.
Kaleidoscope in case
Philip Carpenter kaleidoscope made to Dr Brewster’s patent, £2600 at Dore & Rees.
Another scientific highlight of the Withers sale was Dr Brewster’s Patent Kaleidoscope. The eminent Scottish inventor and scientist, Sir David Brewster, invented the kaleidoscope in 1815 while conducting experiments on light polarisation and chose the Birmingham achromatic lens developer, Philip Carpenter, as the sole manufacturer of these instruments.
Philip Carpenter kaleidoscope made to Dr Brewster’s patent, £2600 at Dore & Rees.
Dating to c.1820, this example in its 7in (18cm) mahogany case came with 13 discs of various coloured objects (one of them damaged). It had a guide of £2000-3000 and made £2600. An example with 11 discs offered by Chiswick Auctions in January 2023 made £1900.
