Dear Andrew,  I like Tom's answer, but I'd rather be called Dennis.
Seriously, Tom I think Tom has the right idea.  Dennis Moir


>From: "Andrew K. Rindsberg" <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: Conchologists of America List <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Private collectors
>Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2000 17:47:47 -0500
>
>We had a discussion awhile back on what to call the person who collects
>shells without having a degree or license to do so. They aren't
>'professional malacologists' and they aren't 'shell dealers'. We used to
>call them 'amateur collectors' but for some reason that term is going out
>of
>favor these days. 'Hobbyist' is inadequate to describe some of these
>people,
>who may be extremely knowledgeable and sometimes have very large
>collections. 'Conchologist' may be uncomfortably formal for collectors at
>the other end of the spectrum, who may be very un-knowledgeable and have no
>desire to study (ology) their shells (conch). 'Non-professional' is
>negative
>and sounds like an insult ('unprofessional').
>
>Paleontologist Earl Manning (Tulane University) suggests the phrase
>'private
>collector' as a generic term. That is apt, since there are private art
>collectors, and they buy and sell art occasionally like most shell
>collectors without losing their 'amateur' status. Once in a long while,
>indeed, an art collector is admiringly called an 'amaTEUR' with the
>cultivated French pronunciation emphasizing the original meaning, 'lover
>(of
>the arts)', but no one considers this an insult. Flattery, perhaps.
>
>So, how about it, Conchlers? Would you like to be called 'private
>collectors', and occasionally, if you're really good at it, 'amaTEURS'?
>
>Andrew K. Rindsberg
>Geological Survey of Alabama


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