Person
Lipfert, Herman Franz Otto (Otto) (1864 - 1942)
- Born
- 1864
Poessneek, Saxe Meinigen, Germany - Died
- 1942
Perth, Western Australia, Australia - Occupation
- Natural history collector and Taxidermist
Summary
Otto Lipfert, a trained furrier and taxidermist, arrived in Western Australia in 1892. In February 1894 he was appointed Taxidermist at the Geological Museum in Perth. He continued in that position when the Museum became the Western Australian Museum and Art Gallery in 1897, retiring in February 1940. As taxidermist he made significant contributions to the art of taxidermy and the preservation of specimens. He also trained collectors, such as John Tunney, in methods of collecting. Lipfert was noted for his preparation of a blue whale specimen beached at Busselton, and later named in his honour. From the earliest days of his employment at the Museum, Lipfert participated in many collecting expeditions for the museum throughout the state, including areas in the southwest, north to Geraldton, and off shore islands. He visited the Houtman Abrolhos three times: for three months in 1894; in 1897 with Richard Helms; and in 1898 with H. Murray Giles. Lipfert's longest expedition was a 15-month journey along the Canning Stock Route from Wiluna to Hall's Creek in 1930 - 1931. Specimens collected on this expedition were shared between the Museum and the South Australian Museum.
Details
Chronology
- 1892
- Life event - Migrated to Western Australia
- February 1894
- Career event - Joined the staff of Geological Museum, Perth
- October 1894 - December 1894
- Career event - Collecting expedition to the Houtman Abrolhos
- 1897
- Career event - Collecting expedition to the Houtman Abrolhos with Richard Helms
- 1898
- Career event - Collecting expedition to the Houtman Abrolhos with H. Murray Giles
- 1898
- Career event - Collecting around Geraldton
- 1900
- Life event - Naturalised
- 1910
- Career event - Collecting on Bernier and Dorre Islands
- 1912
- Career event - Collecting at Margaret River between Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin
- 1920
- Career event - Collecting in Stirling Range
- 1923
- Career event - Collecting around Sharks Bay
- April 1930 - August 1931
- Career event - Naturalist on expedition under A. W. Canning along the Canning Stock Route
- February 1940
- Life event - Retired from the Western Australian Museum and Art Gallery
Related entries
Colleague
Archival resources
Western Australian Museum
- O.H. Lipfert - Records, 1920; Western Australian Museum. Details
Published resources
Journal Articles
- Renwick, Doreen M., 'Otto Lipfert: Taxidermist to the Western Australian Museum, 1894-1942', Early Days, 10 (1) (1989), 57-72. Details
- Whittell, H. M., 'Herman Franz Otto Lipfert', Emu, 40 (2) (1940), 118-9. Details
Resources
- 'Lipfert, O.H.', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1475467. Details
See also
- Johnstone, R. E., 'A history of ornithology at the Western Australian Museum' in Contributions to the History of Australasian Ornithology, Davis, William E.; Recher, Harry E.; Boles, Walter E.; and Jackson, Jerome A., eds (Cambridge, Mass.: Nuttall Ornithological Club, 2008), pp. 165-98. Details
McCarthy, G.J. and Helen Cohn
Created: 20 October 1993, Last modified: 25 February 2025
- Foundation Supporter - Committee to Review Australian Studies in Tertiary Education