332 Obituary — Rev. John Gunn. 



Chaplain to H.E.H. the Duke of Sussex, was appointed to the 

 rectory, and for many years his home was at Irstead. 



By his marriage with Harriet, a daughter of Dawson Turner, 

 F.K.S., of Yarmouth, he became brother-in-law of Sir W. J. Hooker, 

 and Sir Francis Palgrave. Mrs. Gunn was a talented artist, and 

 accompanied her husband over many parts of Norfolk, their atten- 

 tion being in early years mainly given to archaeological studies ; 

 geological subjects, however, in turn, attracted attention, and we 

 find in Lyell's " Elements of Geology " an illustration of the Chalk- 

 pit at Horstead, with its paramoudras, from a drawing made by Mrs. 

 Gunn in 1838. 



From about the year 1850 until the close of his life, John Gunn's 

 energies were very largely devoted to geology, and in particular to 

 the vertebrate remains of the Forest Bed. He gathered together a 

 very fine collection of the fossils, which he presented in 1868 to the 

 Norfolk and Norwich Museum. 



His observations on the geology of Norfolk were brought together 

 in a Sketch, published in 1864, in White's History and Directory 

 of the County. A fourth edition of this article, which was reprinted 

 for private circulation, was issued in 1883, and it was Mr. Gunn's 

 intention to publish the same in a separate and extended form, a task 

 in which he had been diligently engaged to within a few months 

 of his death. 



Mr. Gunn took an active part in the formation of the Norfolk 

 Archaeological Society. In April, 1864, the Norwich Geological 

 Society was founded, Mr. Gunn being elected President, and Mr. 

 J. E. Taylor, Secretary. Until 1878, the reports of the meetings 

 were published in the local newspapers, but a summary of these 

 (with references) was printed in the first part of the " Proceedings " 

 of the Society commenced in 1878. 1 During this period Mr. Gunn 

 contributed frequent accounts of recent discoveries, and also remarks 

 on various subjects, more especially dealing with the Mammaliferous 

 Stone-bed at the base of the Norwich Crag, the relations of the 

 Norwich Crag and Forest Bed to the Chillesford Clay, and the 

 prospect of finding productive Coal-measures in Norfolk and Suffolk. 

 Many excursions were made by the Society to different parts of the 

 county, and at the annual meetings an account of what had been 

 done during the year was given by the President. 



Mr. Gunn also contributed an occasional paper to the Geological 

 Society of London, and to the Geologists' Association. While, 

 however, he was always ready and rejoiced to take up the hammer 

 and go into the field, and to communicate all his information to 

 others, he manifested no great eagerness to publish. Thus it has 

 been that much of his work is embodied in the writings of others, 

 who have acknowledged their indebtedness to him. The recognition 

 of an Upper and Lower Boulder Clay, separated by a mass of sand, 

 to be seen on the coast near Yarmouth and Lowestoft, was due to 

 Mr. Gunn, but published (with acknowledgment) by Joshua 



1 Only one volume has been published, 1878-84 ; the Society is now merged with 

 the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists' Society. 



