offered by the latter town, both for collecting and exporting”.193 By this time he had built a
huge network of clients and suppliers throughout the world and, by his own account,
employed a “Staff of Collectors [...] who are always “en route” through Europe, America,
&c., and are zealous in securing all that is new or interesting to the Naturalist”.194
His catalogues were squarely aimed at large, public institutions. That this was the case, but
also the sort of status public institutions were beginning to enjoy, transpires from the
following statement which Krantz included in the introduction to all of his later catalogues in
some form or another:
“If at public institutions the available funds are insufficient to pay for the objects that are
bought in one single payment, then payment in installments will be accepted with extended
credit.“195
Public institutions were evidently judged to be worthy of credit by default. Krantz’s
judgement in these matters was obviously sound and his business profitable, because it
allowed him to have a magnificent villa built in Bonn when he moved there.196 This building
also served as the premises for his business and it is interesting to see how he included a fancy
showroom. He invited van Breda to visit in 1851 - although there is no indication that van
Breda took up the offer or the two men ever met. The invitation went as follows:
That part of the house which will hold my collections [...] will already be finished in 4
weeks time and I shall be happy to have the pleasure later on of showing you my well-
displayed wealth of fossils and minerals.” 197
Krantz would of course not just have been looking for some friendly chitchat with van Breda,
but was looking for business - one can therefore assume that his showroom was set up to
underscore this aim and not just for his own or other people’s pleasure, even if the one did not
exclude the other. Some years later, in 1859, Krantz proudly proclaimed in his sales catalogue
that his collection of minerals comprising 11.000 specimens, arranged in 12 cabinets,
including meteorites from 85 localities” was one of the finest collections in the world. As he
put it:
“regarding the choice of items and number of species the same [Krantz* collection] surpasses
all existing collections at all, regarding its wealth and partly its scientific value it should only
Catalogue o f Mineralogical, Geological, and Palaeontological Specimens, Collections, Models &c Dr A
Krantz Bonn (London: W. Clowes and Sons, 1855), 2.
194 Ibid.
95 “Gestatten bei öffentlichen Anstalten die verfügbaren Fonds nicht die Bezahlung für zu entnehmende
Gegenstände au f einmal zu leisten, so werden bei ausgedehntem Credit Theilzahlungen gern bewilligt.“
Verzeichniss von verkäuflichen Mineralien, Gebirgsarten, Versteinerungen (Petrefacten) und Gypsmodellen
seltener Fossilien, im Rheinischen Mineralien-Comptoir des Dr. A. Krantz in Bonn, 6th ed. (Bonn: Carl Georgi
1859), v.
Olga Sonntag, Villen am Bonner Rheinufer, 1819-1914 (Bonn: Bouvier, 1998), 205-210.
La partie de ma maison qui tiendra mes collections [...] devenir fini déjà en 4 semains et je serai bien
heureux d ’avoir après le plaisir de vous faire montre mes richesses fossils & Minerais bien exposées.” A. Krantz
to J.G.S. van Breda, 21.02.1851, Haarlem, ATS, vol. 2283.
be surpassed by the three public collections in Vienna, Berlin and that of the british [sic]
Museum.“ 198
Although he acknowledges that they are better than his own collection, by invoking the names
of these three public collections Krantz is of course placing himself on par with them. The
reason he does so is because these public institutions - or rather public museums such as the
British Museum — were not only deemed creditworthy, but were immensely prestigious in that
they were seen to serve a higher ideal: that of science. Krantz was eager to avoid the
impression that, rather than the advancement of science, what he sought to serve through his
business was his own financial advancement. But it is striking to see how public collections
and museums had become the benchmark for all those involved with scientific collections.
Indeed, Teylers Museum may have been smaller than the three collections enumerated by
Krantz, but it was not seen as being entirely different in nature g even if it was privately
owned. The geologist von Meyer who was already mentioned above can serve as crown
witness here. Five years before writing the letter from which the quote above was taken, he
had already been in correspondence with van Breda about another collection he wanted to sell
because he had performed all the research he wanted on the specimens of which it consisted.
He wrote van Breda:
“[...] that, in view of its importance and completeness, I will part only reluctantly with this
fossil, and am inclined only to give it to a place where it will be preserved most safely for all
times. I prefer Teylers Museum even over the British Museum in London and the collections
in Paris, Munich and here, which would also have been keen to acquire this fossil. Towards
the end of this week I will have finished with the depiction [of the fossil] and my research. ”
199
Again, the absolute sincerity of his arguments can perhaps be doubted - he was, after all,
conducting business - but nevertheless the structure of his argument and the fact that Teylers
Museum was mentioned alongside other major public institutions is revealing enough. Most
importantly, it suggests that the changing connotations of the word “museum” were not only
affecting the way Teylers Museum was beheld with regard to its collection of fine art, but also
with regard to its scientific collections.
19 “systematisch in 12 Schränken aufgestellte Mineralien-Sammlung von 11000 Exemplaren inclusive
Meteoriten von 85 Localitäten”; “[Dieselbe übertrifft in Bezug auf Auswahl der Stücke und Anzahl der Arten
alle vorhandenen Sammlungen überhaupt, in Bezug auf Reichthum und theilweise wissenschaftlichen Werth
dürfte sie nur von den drei öffentlichen Sammlungen Wiens, Berlins und der des britischen Museums übertroffen
werden.“ Verzeichniss von verkäuflichen Mineralien, Gebirgsarten, Versteinerungen (Petrefacten) und
Gypsmodellen seltener Fossilien, im Rheinischen Mineralien-Comptoir des Dr. A. Krantz in Bonn, vi. [1859]
“[...] dass ich mich von dieser Versteinerung, in Anbetracht ihrer Wichtigkeit und Vollständigkeit, schwer
trenne und sie nur an einen Ort zu geben gesonnen bin wo sie für alle Zeiten am sichersten aufgehoben ist. Dem
Teylerschen Museum gebe ich den Vorzug selbst vor dem Britischen Museum in London und den Sammlungen
in Paris, München und hier, welche diese Versteinerung ebenfalls gern übernehmen würden. Gegen Ende dieser
Woche werde ich mit der Abbildung under Untersuchung fertig werden.” C.E.H. von Meyer to J.G.S. van Breda,
04.06.1855, Haarlem, ATS, vol. 2284.