Training Plates and Illustrators

Teaching boards at Landbohøjskolen

The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University was established in 1858, and the teaching took place with a mix of lectures, practical-oriented exercises, and excursions. The teaching also made extensive use of preparations, models, and teaching boards, often uniquely produced at the Agricultural University. Teaching boards were generally a common teaching material in educational contexts from the mid-1800s, and a wide range of subjects could also be purchased ready-made.

Many of the motifs on the teaching boards were motifs from the school's textbooks, which were drawn in large format and often also were reproductions of specimens from the collections.

The sizes of the boards varied greatly – one of the smallest we have in the collection today is, for example, only 50 cm wide, while the largest are several meters long and wide. It was generally important that the boards were large and clear, as they often had to hang in an auditorium and also be seen from the back rows. Some of the very large boards are also designed with text and graphs.

A system with numbering of the boards made it possible to find the right boards for the right teaching, and we can see that they have been used and appreciated frequently, as many of them have been repaired over time.

Landbohøjskolens Illustrators

The Agricultural University employed illustrators specifically to create illustrations for textbooks and teaching boards – this included veterinary anatomy, physiology, pathology, zoology, botany, agriculture, etc. Some illustrators only illustrated individual items or worked for limited periods on specific types of projects, while others had permanent positions that lasted for several years and resulted in a large production of illustrations. Often in close collaboration with professors at the Agricultural University.

Female illustrators in a male-dominated workplace

Many of these illustrators were women who had long-term employment in an otherwise male-dominated workplace and who enjoyed great recognition for their work – including, for example, Bodil Rohweder/Strubberg, Ellen Backe, Ingeborg Dorthea Frederiksen.

However, among the names and initials of the illustrators, we also have examples of illustrators that we today find it difficult to identify or know very little about. Who were the skilled illustrators Mrs. Ella Carstensen, Miss Ludvigsen, or Miss P. Sven(d)sen? Or the person behind the initials E.R.?

The illustrators we know of have been gathered in an Overview over Illustrators from Landbohøjskolen.

The teaching boards are phased out during the 70s

How old are our teaching boards? They are not always dated, but we know that a quite large part of them is over 100 years old, and they were produced extensively in the period around the turn of the century and all the way through the 30s. New plates were still being drawn up through the 40s and 50s, and we have a few examples of newer boards than this.

After the trainning plates and preparations had been a constant part of the teaching over time, the school gradually introduced slides and overheads after 1960. During the 70s, the trainning plates disappeared from the teaching.

^{Teaching situation.}

^{Zoological lecture about fertilization and development of the embryo by the professor of general zoology Niels Haarløv on the anatomy building's auditorium. 1973.}

The Veterinary Collections and School History

A part of the school's unique trainning plates is still preserved in the library. The specimens are also preserved as part of the Veterinary Collections (De Veterinære Samlinger) on campus. Follow the Veterinary Collections on Instagram for a lot of exciting examples of specimens from the collections.

If you are generally interested in learning more about the use of visual aids in teaching and seeing visual aids across a wide range of subjects, visit School History.