Duchess of Portland, 18c Collector [audio 10min]

Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Portland, was one of the greatest collectors of the 18th century. During the course of her lifetime she put together what became known around the world as the Portland Museum, one of the largest and most remarkable natural history collections ever assembled. On her death in 1785, an auction of 40,000 lots on sale took an astonishing 39 days. Now, the Harley Gallery in Welbeck, Nottinghamshire has brought some of her amazing collection together for the first time, and reporter Felicity Finch has been discovering what is on show.