2 THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS OF EUROPE 



the museum. On the death of the Due d' Orleans in 

 1660, Colbert bought for the library the celebrated 

 paintings of flowers on vellum by Robert. 



In 1730 the Garden became neglected, but in 1732 

 M. Buffon became Director, and from that moment 

 success was assured for them. He was well backed 

 by M. Daubenton. Every year the Garden was im- 

 proved, the old houses were demolished and new ones 

 built. The whole of the ground was put under cultiva- 

 tion. Trees were planted, and the Garden extended 

 to the bank of the Seine. Valuable gifts of plants, 

 minerals and zoological specimens were received from 

 the Academy of Sciences, Comte d' Angevilliers, Chinese 

 missionaries, the King of Poland and M. Bougainville, 

 who brought back from his voyage round the world a 

 magniricent collection of animals and birds. Whilst 

 Director of the Garden, Buffon wrote his chef-d'oeuvre 

 — a natural history — and after a splendid career he 

 died in 1788. 



Bernardin de Saint-Pierre was the next Director. 

 In 1794 the large and valuable collection of the Palais 

 de Versailles was offered to the Jardin des Plantes, 

 and accepted on its behalf by Bernardin de Saint - 

 Pierre. This collection contained five specimens which 

 had never been seen in Paris before — ^ namely, a 

 quagga, now unhappily extinct, a hartebeest, a crested 

 pigeon from the Isle of Banga, an Indian rhinoceros 

 and a lion from Senegal, which latter had as a com- 

 panion a dog, with which it lived on terms of the 

 greatest friendship. The remainder of the collection 

 at Versailles had been pillaged by the mob in the 

 French Kevolution. 



