Subserie RAS MEMB/5/4 - Diplomas for Membership

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This sub-series contains diplomas sent to members as proof of their admission or election as Fellows of the Society. These include diplomas for several types of membership, including one presumably intended for Foreign Members in the 1820s, several copies dating from the period before the Second World War and after 1969, as well as more modern examples.

Since its establishment the Society has maintained the tradition of sending a diploma to a newly elected Honorary Member to commemorate their membership. Foreign and Corresponding Members, before these two types of membership went obsolete, were also sent diplomas. The practice of issuing its Honorary Members a diploma was suspended during and after the Second World War and was revived at the decision of the Council at the meeting on 14 April 1966. Records show that Fellows elected as early as in 1945 were also sent their diplomas retrospectively when this practice was revived.