The Passionate Collector - George Rae FossilsAn exhibition of fossils collected by
George Rae and bequeathed to the Hunterian Museum
11th September - 20th December 2003 
Prehistoric Encounters George Rae was a man driven
by his passion for fossils and spent
many days collecting since he retired in 1989. His interest in fossils began
at an early age inspired by collecting crinoids with his grandfather. As he
moved about Britain with his job at Ferranti, he continued to acquire
fossils near to where he lived. His job eventually brought him back to
Scotland and he settled in Edinburgh.
George worked for the RAF as a night fighter pilot and aeronautical engineer until his mid-twenties. He then worked as an engineer with Ferranti, developing Pulse Doppler Radar and also working on the Harrier Jump Jet.
He had an enthusiasm for ammonites, but started collecting
trilobites not long before he retired.
He moved to Dumfriesshire where he became familiar with the Lady Burn Starfish Beds from which he collected extensively from the early 1990’s. He became an Honorary Research Associate of the University of Glasgow and later bequeathed his collection to the Hunterian. Rare fossils that were being researched by George are new to Science. Sadly, George developed cancer and died before he could complete his researches on these new species discovered as a result of his excavations at Girvan. George died on the 10th November 1998. Measurements are of the fossil not the field of view unless otherwise stated
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