In 1818, two young intrepid French naturalists, Pierre-Médard Diard and Alfred Duvaucel, left Paris to study the fauna and flora of Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Diard and Duvaucel accompanied Sir Stamford Raffles to Singapore in 1819, where they commissioned artists to create drawings of the specimens that they collected from the island and the wider region. Today, the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris houses 117 of these drawings—mostly of birds—with a copy of the digitised images held by the National Library Board of Singapore.

Our staff from the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum played a key role in identifying many of these stunning, lifelike illustrations, so that these drawings, which form an early record of the biodiversity of Singapore and Southeast Asia, can be used for future research.

The collection of drawings also forms the centrepiece of the new book ‘Diard & Duvaucel: A Collection of French Natural History Drawings of Singapore and Southeast Asia, 1818–1820’ that features all 117 paintings and places them in the larger context of natural history. This bilingual book—in English and French—is the result of a collaboration between the Embassy of France in Singapore, the National Library Board (NLB) of Singapore and Epigram Books, in partnership with the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (MNHN) and the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore, and with the support of the TotalEnergies Foundation.

Celebrating the launch of ‘Diard & Duvaucel’

As part of the vOilah! France Singapore Festival 2021 presented by the Embassy of France in Singapore, the Museum attended the launch of the book hosted by NLB on 12 November 2021, at The Pod, National Library Building.

During his speech, His Excellency Mr Marc Abensour, Ambassador of France to Singapore, expressed his gratitude for the outstanding work and support provided by LKCNHM in the production of the book. He noted how Diard & Duvaucel “is the outcome of a process started years ago” following the successful collaboration of the book ‘Voyageurs, Explorateurs et Scientifiques: The French and Natural History in Singapore’ which was published by LKCNHM and the MNHN, during the Singapore Bicentennial in 2019.

Panel Discussion

During the launch, our Research Associate, Martyn Low, and Museum Officer of Crustacea Systematics, Dr Joelle Lai, took part in a panel discussion along with other experts from France, Spain and Singapore. They discussed the significance of the illustrated specimens to the natural history of Singapore and the region along with the present biodiversity conservation issues faced today.

Participating remotely were:

• Dr Kees Rookmaaker, Chief Editor of the Rhino Resource Centre & Senior Research Fellow at Wallace Online, National University of Singapore [who wrote the captions in Diard & Duvaucel]
• Mr Steven Dickinson, Group Biodiversity Specialist, TotalEnergies

The Little Turtle that Grew into Something More

Out of the beautifully-painted specimens presented in the book, one particular drawing that stood out is the spiny turtle which is known to be the earliest natural history drawing from Singapore.

“That little turtle really grew into something much, much bigger,” expressed Mr Low as he reflects on how significant the spiny turtle, along with the rest of the Diard & Duvaucel collection, was in bringing together the different institutions within Singapore and in France. Such collaborations pave the way forward in building a “cultural database”, as described by Prof Bruno David, President of the MNHN, both for Singapore and Southeast Asia in the future.

A Reminder to Protect our Local Biodiversity

Not only are these illustrated works of immense scientific and aesthetic value, Dr Joelle Lai highlights that they are also a reminder of our responsibility towards the protection of our local biodiversity.

“We have lost about more than 95% of our natural habitats since 1819 … We have lost about 44 species of birds and most of these species that we have lost are primarily dependent on the rainforest,” shares Dr Lai. Indeed, such illustrations of the animals that Diard and Duvaucel had encountered 200 years ago bear a grim reflection on the number of species that had been extirpated in Singapore due to its rapid urbanisation over the years.

Hope for the Future

Despite such losses, Dr Lai offers “a glimmer of hope”. One particular species, the green broadbill, (which was illustrated in the book) was previously known to be last recorded in 1941. It was recently spotted again in 2021 on Pulau Ubin to the delight of the birdwatching community in Singapore, as shared by Dr Lai.

“Good natural habitats are very important for the survival of our species in Singapore,” stressed Dr Lai. “With the announcement of the SG Green Plan, NParks announcement of the City in Nature programme … we are very hopeful that some of the animals that Diard and Duvaucel had encountered 200 years ago … [will] find this city in nature that is Singapore … welcoming enough to come back and start their families again.”

Watch the full launch by clicking on the image below:

Note: The book Diard & Duvaucel is now on sale at our Museum Shop.

[Updated as of 1 May 2022]