RCSI Heritage Collections

With the bicentenary of Sir William Wilde only around the corner, the RCSI Heritage Collections decided to look at another gifted eye and ear surgeon who lived, worked and taught in Dublin at the same time as Wilde. A major difference between these two characters was their levels of flamboyancy and it's because of this that Arthur Jacob is not as widely known as Wilde. Bust of Arthur Jacob by Joseph Robinson Kirk Arthur Jacob PRCSI 1837 and 1864 Arthur came from a medical family. His father, John, was Surgeon to Queen's County Infirmary and enjoyed a large practice while his grandfather, Michael, was also a surgeon. Arthur started his medical education be becoming indentured to his father in 1808. In 1811 he became a pupil of Abraham Colles in Steevens' Hospital. Like many other surgeons of the time, Arthur travelled to further his surgical knowledge. He went to the University of Edinburgh and graduated with an M.D. in 1814. The it was to London where he stud...

On Friday 29 th November the College was delighted to receive a donation of three Colles portraits (two of Abraham Colles, one of Sophia Colles) from Mr. Michael Brooke and family in Australia. Abraham Colles (1773-1843) Mr. Brooke’s family are descendants of Abraham’s fifth son, Richard. Richard was born in Dublin in 1818 and received his BA from Trinity College Dublin in 1841. After a decade at the English Bar he migrated to Australia taking up residence in Castlemaine, Victoria in 1852. Richard became Sheriff of Castlemaine and held that position for 35 years. He was close friends with the famous Australian explorer Robert Burke O’Hara (1820-1861). On his explorations of the Australian outback O’Hara named a mountain in the north-eastern corner of Queensland ‘Mt. Collis’ after his friend. O’Hara died in the outback near Cooper Creek in South Australia in 1861. Richard laid the foundation stone of the O’Hara memorial in Castlemaine 1862.  Sophia Colles, wife of A...