This digitised material is free to access, but contains information or visuals that may:<ul><li>include personal details of living individuals</li><li>be upsetting or distressing</li><li>be explicit or graphic</li><li>include objects and images of objects decontextualised in a way that is offensive to the originating culture.</li></ul>By viewing this material, we ask that you use the content lawfully, ethically and responsibly under the conditions set out in our <a href="https://wellcomecollection.cdn.prismic.io/wellcomecollection/d4817da5-c71a-4151-81c4-83e39ad4f5b3_Wellcome+Collection_Access+Policy_Aug+2020.pdf">Access Policy</a>.

You must accept the terms to view the content.

National Geographic Society Portrait

item

Galleries and Reading Room

Café

Shop

Library

Our galleries are quietest on weekdays and weekend mornings. At busy times, particularly on Saturdays, you may need to queue for our temporary exhibitions.

We’re undertaking some research with website visitors to learn more about how people find access-related information provided by museums. This survey shouldn't take longer than 10 minutes to complete. Thank you for your time!

Help us organize our website content.

National Geographic Society portrait (colour, 21mm x 14mm) by Jean Leon Huens, showing Crick and James Watson with a double helix image.

The file also contains a letter (13 August, 1974) to Crick from Andrew Poggenpohl (National Geographic Magazine) informing Crick of the magazine's intention to "publish a brief portfolio of six paintings of eminent biologists".

In Crick's reply (19 August, 1974), he suggests that the painting might provide an opportunity to correct a popular misconception of the length of the DNA molecule: "The photograph that you sent me displays about two turns of the double helix. However, even the smallest DNA molecule is very much longer than that and the DNA molecules in higher organisms can be extremely long, some being over a million turns or more in length. It might be sensible therefore if the model is to appear in a painting, if the artist were instructed to make it appear endless in the sense that the beginning and the end of the model should be outside the frame of the painting. The majority of the population of the world, including Salvador Dali, is under the impression that DNA consists of about a turn and a half and I think that Geographic might do something to correct this misapprehension."

Wellcome uses cookies.

National Geographic Society Portrait

Licence and re-use

Wellcome uses cookies.

Content advisory

National Geographic Society Portrait

Licence and re-use