London Zoo in the good old days: historic archive goes online

The photographic archive of London Zoo, one of the world’s most important such collections, is to be published for the first time, with the pictures offered for sale to fund conservation.

From today, the Zoological Society of London has placed photographs on its website.



The decision to post the pictures online came after images from the archive were blown up on canvases and hung on the walls as part of a refurbishment.



The society said: “We had so many favourable comments about the canvases and guests asking if they could buy one. We realised what a fascinating archive of images we were sitting on. Going through the photos and slides has been a reminder of London Zoo’s astonishing history and the changes it has undergone, which mirror broader changes in understanding of the environment and animal husbandry.”

The website is here, although the navigation is not great.