Tracy Chevalier Curates Exhibition on Paleontologist Mary Anning, Takes Up Fossil Hunting

Novelist Tracy Chevalier has curated an exhibition devoted to Mary Anning, the pioneering paleontologist of the 19th century. Chevalier, whose books include the bestselling novel Girl with a Pearl Earring, has also begun searching for fossils herself after becoming absorbed by the subject. The exhibition examines Anning's life and scientific contributions. Anning worked as a fossil hunter along the English coast and made significant discoveries of prehistoric marine reptiles. The project reflects Chevalier's engagement with the history of paleontology and with Anning's legacy as a woman in science. Details of the exhibition's venue and dates were not specified in the source material. Chevalier described being bitten by the fossil-hunting bug, a pursuit she has taken up personally alongside her curatorial work. The exhibition brings attention to Anning's role in the development of paleontology during the 19th century.