Boston

Dainty sea anemones in shades of pink, pale blue, and green; a dark gray sea slug that resembles an elegant antique brooch; and an electric-blue Portuguese man-of-war — these are just a few of the exquisitely handcrafted glass sea creatures on view at the Harvard Museum of Natural History.

The 58 models on display are part of a collection of 433 pieces made by father-and-son glass artists Leopold and Rudolph Blaschka. Germany’s Dresden Museum persuaded Leopold to make the first glass models in 1863 after increased public interest in science following the 1859 publication of Darwin’s The Origin of Species. University and museum researchers were looking for accurate replicas of animals to study, since previous methods were proving unreliable. (Animals preserved in alcohol or formaldehyde quickly lost their shape and color and sank to the bottoms of specimen jars.) Realistic glass replicas were the perfect answer.

The glass creatures, along with Leopold Blaschka’s lampworking table, tools, and a short video on the history of this glass menagerie and its creators, are on display through January 4, 2009. For more info, call 617.495.3045 or visit hmnh.harvard.edu.

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