Amoret Spooner (left) and Zoë Simmons (right) dismantling the exhibition
This week we’ve been at the Museum of the History of Science on Broad Street, taking down our temporary exhibition, ‘Natural Histories’. We had some lovely feedback from people who saw the display. They enjoyed seeing old friends from the Museum of Natural History’s displays such as the giant ammonite that people can touch, the jaw of Megalosaurus, the first dinosaur ever to be described by scientists, and the lovely old insect collecting tools used by entomologists.
Specimens stored in spirit need very careful handling
The exhibition also had some things we are rarely able to put on display. The beautiful hand-painted butterflies in William Jones’ Icones, and White Watson’s inlaid stone slabs representing the strata of Derbyshire, are just two of the treasures we normally keep in a darkened room because too much light will damage them. We showed crabs collected by Charles Darwin on the voyage of The Beagle, and even a plant from the University’s herbaria that was collected by Linnaeus, the Swedish scientist who devised the system of ‘Latin’ names we still use for plants and animals today.
Every item is being carefully checked and packed up, but don’t worry, they are not staying in our stores for long. We will be taking them to Banbury Museum where ‘Natural Histories’ will be going on show again from 30th November 2013 until late February 2014. So, even if you missed the exhibition in Oxford, you’ll have a last chance to see it in Banbury.
Conservator Gemma Aboe packs away the pigmy anteater
All photos, Keiko Ikeuchi, MHS
Monica Price, Head of Earth Collections
Darkened not dormant 
Hello, do you any photos of the White Watson inlaid stone stratas, to whet our appetite?
Hi there
There is a small-ish picture of the tablets (not as they were on display but as they are normally stored in the Museum of Natural History) about half way down this page: http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/naturalhistories/Representations
I don’t think we took a close-up of them unfortunately, but there is lots more information about the other things in the Natural Histories exhibition on that site too.
Scott.
Thanks Scott,
I work for Buxton Museum and Art Gallery and we are really interested in White Watson’s tablets – sadly we don’t have one of our own. We did try and get our hands on a 1811 copy of his ‘A Delineation of the Strata of Derbyshire’ book, but were outbid – http://enlightenmentderbyshire.wordpress.com/?s=white+watson
On the above link there is an interesting document you can download which the Derbyshire Record Office has created. It might be worth a look. Last year we did buy a Derbyshire strata map produced by Elias Hall which is rather nice – http://enlightenmentderbyshire.wordpress.com/2012/12/03/elias-hall-a-vertical-stretch-of-the-strata-across-the-high-peak-hundred-of-derbyshire/
Anna
Hi Anna
It’s a shame that the book got away isn’t it? Thanks for the links though; it’s good to read about his wider work, not least because I am from near Sheffield, so grew up in and around a lot of the places mentioned in that document.
If you would ever like to come and see the tablets let me know and I’ll arrange something.
Scott.
Ps. I like your Joseph Wright of Derby icon. 🙂
Thanks Scott!