Whatmough Collection

This collection of Wax Fruit was commissioned by the Industrial & Technological Museum in the 1870s. The models were based on specimens grown and donated by Mr Robert Whatmough who operated an orchard and commercial nursery on the property Willis Vale at Greensborough, Victoria, while others came to the collection via the Horticultural Society of Victoria. The Society specimens had been grown in the Horticultural Society's Experimental Gardens at Richmond from seedlings raised by Robert Whatmough (a founding member and practical committee member of the Society). Many of these Wax models were prepared for the Philadelphia Exhibition in 1876 by the Museum model maker, Thomas McMillan. They were exhibited in the Victorian display in the Horticultural Gallery.