Cowie, Helen Louise orcid.org/0000-0003-1485-8350 (2017) From the Andes to the Outback:Acclimatising Alpacas in the British Empire. Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History. pp. 551-579. ISSN 0308-6534
Abstract
This article examines attempts to naturalise the alpaca in the British Empire. In the nineteenth century Britain made concerted efforts to appropriate useful plants and animals and acclimatise them within its own colonies. The alpaca was a prime target for acclimatisers on account of its silken wool, which was manufactured into a range of luxury textiles. Its export was, however, banned by law in Peru and Bolivia, so the animals had to be smuggled out of the Andean states and shipped illegally to Britain and Australia. The article studies the circuits of exchange that facilitated the transfer of alpacas from one continent to another and considers how British subjects in places as diverse as Bradford, Liverpool, Sydney and Arequipa promoted and benefited from the naturalisation scheme. It situates alpaca acclimatisation within a wider discourse of agricultural ‘improvement’, bio-piracy and imperial adventure.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017, Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details. |
Keywords: | alpacas, acclimatisation, Australia, Charles Ledger, empire, network,empire,Alpaca,animals,Australia,networks,acclimatisation |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (York) > History (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 05 Sep 2017 11:15 |
Last Modified: | 07 Feb 2025 00:17 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1080/03086534.2017.1353260 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/03086534.2017.1353260 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:120912 |
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