Notebooks of Alexander Parkes, c 1860s-1870s.

Alexander Parkes, inventor of the first synthetic plastic, 1848.

Alexander Parkes, inventor of the first synthetic plastic, c 1850.

Alexander Parkes, inventor of the first synthetic plastic, c 1870-1879.

Bronze medal awarded to Alexander Parkes, 1885.

Alexander Parkes, English inventor and chemist, with his family, c 1870.

Parkesine; the first plastic, mid 19th century.

Alexander Parkes, English inventor and chemist, c 1880s.

Alexander Parkes, English inventor and chemist, 1875.

Synthetic and semi-synthetic objects, c 1860-1920.

Daniel Spill's Ivoride Works, Homerton, London, c 1870s.

Daniel Spill's Ivoride Works, Homerton, London, c 1870s.