Guide to collections


Collection of marine molluscs from Cuba

Name Collection of marine molluscs from Cuba
Alternative name MCNB. Col. marine molluscs Cuba
Cite as Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona (MCNB). Collection of marine molluscs from Cuba
MCNB. Col. marine molluscs Cuba
Description Collection of marine molluscs from Cuba consisting of dry shells. In all, there are 9,000 specimens grouped in 1,230 lots. Most of the collection consists of gastropods and bivalves, along with a number of Polyplacophora and Cephalopoda. Wide range of gastropod and bivalve taxa. Most of the material belongs to the Museum's historical collection (original collection of Francesc Martorell and collections of Artur Bofill, Joan Baptista d'Aguilar-Amat, Joan Rosals, Barcelona Royal Academy of Science and the Arts, Manuel de Chía, Baltasar Serradell and the Jaume Bofill Institute, amongst others). The collection also includes specimens donated by Adolfo de Reynoso and subsequently by Marià Ferrer Bravo. The most recent additions are the occasional donations from the Joan Rosal i Sagalés collection. The whole collection has been registered, documented and digitalized to specimen-lot level. Data from a part (less than half) of the collection can be consulted on-line on the website of the Barcelona Natural History Museum and the portal GBIF. A sample of the marine fauna from Cuba has been displayed in the Museum's permanent exhibition.
Provenance The first specimens came from the shell collection of Francesc Martorell i Peña and were part of the original collection of the Martorell Museum (1879). Also of interest are the lots donated a few years later by Adolfo de Reynoso (1882). The addition of the collections of Artur Bofill, Joan Baptista d'Aguilar-Amat and Joan Rosals in 1917-1920 increased the Museum's collection of marine molluscs from Cuba significantly. Further material came from other historical collections that were added subsequently, including specimens from the collections of Barcelona Royal Academy of Science and the Arts (on permanent loan to the Museum since 1925), of Manuel de Chía (1923), Baltasar Serradell (1931), José Giner (1932) and the Jaume Balmes Institute (1936). The Royal Academy's collection includes specimens collected by José María Salvañá and Rafael Resalt, amongst others. Also represented are the molluscs donated to the Museum by Marià Ferrer Bravo in 1932. Under the direction of Artur Bofill i Poch (1892-1929) and then J. B. d’Aguilar-Amat (1929-1936), the malacological section began to be reorganized and all the different collections were united and the nomenclature revised (all the original labels have been preserved). The most recent additions are the donations made from the collection of Joan Rosal i Sagalés in 2000. Francesc Uribe has been curator of the Museum's non-Arthropod Invertebrate collection since 1997. During his time in charge, the registration, documentation and computerization to specimen-lot level has been completed.
Kingdom coverage Animalia
Taxon coverage Bivalvia (strength), Cephalopoda, Gastropoda (strength), Polyplacophora
Collectors Ferrer Bravo, Marià
[altres]
Collection type Preserved
Primary purpose Research
Include types No
Grouping principle Spatial
Formations periods ca. 1882-
Development statuses Passive growth
Collection extents 1230 lots, 9000 specimens
Documentation state Documentary control of all the lots (registration, inventory and computerization). Most material still needs to be revised: identification to species level based on documentation and original labels (nomenclature updated for the samples documented with MuseumPlus).
Specimen preservation methods No Treatment
Preparation and conservation Dried material boxed or wrapped up in protective material in individual containers. Control of the environmental conditions in storage areas.
McGinley conservation statuses Level 8
Conservation status date 22-07-2013 (dd-mm-yyyy)
Institution Natural Science Museum of Barcelona - Non-Arthropod Invertebrates Department
Parent collection Collection of marine molluscs
Collection of molluscs from Cuba
Associated person Miguel Prieto (Documentalist), Francesc Uribe (Curator),
Item level access MCNB Mollusca GBIF online database (date when consulted) (accessed through GBIF data portal, http://data.gbif.org/datasets/resource/9125, 2013-09-04)
Col·leccions en línia de Zoologia (MCNB) / Online Zoological Collections (MCNB)
Related material Bofill i Poch, A., 1917. La colecció Rosals. Anuari de la Junta de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, 2: 193-196.

Martorell, M. & Bofill, A., 1888. Catálogo de la colección conchiológica que fué de D. Francisco Martorell y Peña legada por dicho señor á la ciudad de Barcelona y existente en el Museo Martorell de la propia ciudad. Barcelona. 94 pp.