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Morse had no formal degrees from any university, but was granted an honorary PhD and hired as a professor by Bowdoin College in Maine in 1871.

Morse had no formal degrees from any university, but was granted an honorary PhD and hired as a professor by Bowdoin College in Maine in 1871.

He set sail in May 1877 for Japan, after having little success in finding live brachiopod specimens to study on the East Coast of the United States. The month after his arrival in Japan in June, he was offered a teaching position at the newly founded [[Tokyo Imperial University]]. While on a two-year contract at the university, he lectured on zoology and related subjects, and is credited with introducing the Darwinian concepts of natural selection and evolution to Japan; he engaged in numerous surveys of shells and mollusks, including an excavation of the [[Omori shellmound|Ômori shellmound]], which he had discovered shortly after his arrival.

He set sail in May 1877 for Japan, after having little success in finding live brachiopod specimens to study on the East Coast of the United States. The month after his arrival in Japan in June, he was offered a teaching position at the newly founded [[Tokyo Imperial University]]. While on a two-year contract at the university, he lectured on zoology and related subjects, and is credited with introducing the Darwinian concepts of natural selection and evolution to Japan; he engaged in numerous surveys of shells and mollusks, including an excavation of the [[Omori shellmound|Ômori shellmound]], which he had discovered shortly after his arrival, noticing it through the window of the train as he rode from [[Sakuragicho Station|Yokohama]] to [[Shinbashi]].

During this time, he developed as well a taste for Japanese ceramics. Though the pieces which initially caught his eye were, his friends told him, not of any particular age or quality, he was then introduced to more esteemed pieces, and quickly developed an eye for potter's marks (i.e. seals or stamps incised into a piece identifying the maker). Though Morse never learned to read Japanese, it is said he had an incredible memory and learned to identify a great many potter's marks; friends and colleagues taught him about the different types of glazes and clays.

During this time, he developed as well a taste for Japanese ceramics. Though the pieces which initially caught his eye were, his friends told him, not of any particular age or quality, he was then introduced to more esteemed pieces, and quickly developed an eye for potter's marks (i.e. seals or stamps incised into a piece identifying the maker). Though Morse never learned to read Japanese, it is said he had an incredible memory and learned to identify a great many potter's marks; friends and colleagues taught him about the different types of glazes and clays.