Object Status:
Unlocated
Accession Date:
June 3, 1815
Primary Source Reference:
Peale Museum Accessions Book, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, p. 76
Additional Source Text:
"It was caught a sleep on the surface of the sea, in latitude 25 longitude 75 for which I paid 40$. We suppose its weight to be about 400 pounds."
Poulson's American Daily Advertiser (Philadelphia), 17 June 1815 reads: "Large Turtle, now alive in Peale's Museum, and can only be seen until the 4th of July, after which it will be killed and preserved. From the nose to the end of the tail it measures 5 feet 8 inches, width of the shell 2 feet 6 inches, and about 400 pounds weight."
Notes:
The coordinates of 25 degrees N and 75 degrees W place the location about 200 miles east of Nassau, the Bahamas.
Specimen Type:
Live (presumably eventually taxidermied/preserved)
