Grip the Raven
The taxidermied raven that inspired the poem of the same name
Category Hunting and Taxidermy
Perched on a log, in the Rare Books department of the Philadelphia Free Library stands a strange piece of history. Dead since 1841 but preserved with arsenic, and frozen inside a shadow box this birds legacy is longer than most people’s. His name is Grip. Grip the Clever, Grip the Wicked, Grip the Knowing.
Once Charles Dickens's pet raven, upon its death Dickens had it professionally taxidermied and mounted. Grip even makes an appearance in Dickens's lesser known story "Barnaby Rudge."
That book was reviewed by then literary critic Edgar Allen Poe. Poe wrote that “[the raven's] croaking might have been prophetically heard in the course of the drama.” It wasn't long after this that Poe published his breakout work "The Raven." The coincidence didn't escape notice and Poe was taunted with the refrain “Here comes Poe with his Raven, like Barnaby Rudge, / Three fifths of him genius, two fifths sheer fudge.”
Despite this, the Raven was a smash success and Poe enjoyed performing readings of the Raven at fancy salon parties. He would turn down all the lights and recite the poem with great drama. Everyone referred to him as “the Raven” but it would only be 4 years after publishing “The Raven” and gaining worldwide fame that Poe would be found delirious on the streets of Baltimore, dying shortly thereafter.
Today, Grip the Raven, who inspired both Dickens and Poe, can still be seen, proud as ever, in the Free Library of Philadelphia Rare Book Department, along with a great collection of both Poe and Dickens originals and other rare books.
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- Hours Open Mon - Fri Tours available at 11 a.m., or by prior arrangement.
- Address 1901 Vine St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Comments
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Anonymous
October 5, 2009
Either that's a real close up or Ravens are way bigger than I thought (and I dont mean Ray Lewis!) <a href="http://gregfaulkner.com/">Greg</a> -
Will this be on the Philly Tour?
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