Subtitled Chemist, Ceramicist & Cartoonist, the current Special Collections exhibition in the de Beer Gallery, Special Collections, first floor, Central University Library, highlights the life of an extraordinary man – from humble beginnings living in Kaikorai Valley and first work in Dunedin (e.g. Sargoods Boot Factory), to his remarkable work in the field of ceramics in Stoke-on-Trent. In addition there is his magnum opus: his 16-volume definitive A Comprehensive Treatise on Inorganic and Theoretical Chemistry (1922-1937), which amounts to some 15,000 pages and 16 million words. This single author effort has never been equalled. Mellor was also a skilled cartoonist and his Uncle Joe’s Nonsense (1934), which is on display, contains a collection of humorous stories illustrated with clever pen sketches.

The exhibition runs to 5 March 2015, Monday to Friday 8.30 to 5.00

For further information, please contact Special Collections Librarian Dr Donald Kerr (donald.kerr@otago.ac.nz) or co-curator Lyall Hanton, Mellor Professor of Chemistry, University of Otago (lyall.hanton@otago.ac.nz)

See this fun interview with Prof. Lyall Hanton, the current Mellor Professor of Chemistry at Otago, about the exhibition.