Ask the curator about his pick of Wisbech Museum's quirky treasures
Find out more about Wisbech and the Fens from the town's prosperous Victorian heyday up to today at Wisbech Museum's October exhibition The Odder the Better.
On display from 10am to 4pm every Wednesday to Saturday throughout October, it's every bit as quirky as its title.
Curator Robert Bell has selected for the public's entertainment a curiosity given to Wisbech and Fenland Museum each year since it was founded in 1835 – many of them previously unseen.
He will be in the Hudson Room at the Museum from 11am to noon on Wednesday, October 16 for a face-to-face Curator's Coffee Morning to have a chat and answer your questions.
Robert said: “Collectors and their collections of curiosities make up the majority of the museum's treasures. We're still being offered and have the privilege of putting on display the items people have brought together and treasured. The variety is staggering – and every item tells a story.
“The gentlemen of Wisbech, led by the vicar Henry Fardell, set up Wisbech Museum Society in 1835 to discuss the things they collected because they were curious about science and history and new discoveries.
“After a few years they built our museum to house their collections and in 1847 they opened it so local people could see, enjoy and learn from the displays.”
Robert made his choices to show how what fascinates people has changed over time – and also how public attitudes to items have changed.
he said: “We're more sensitive today and rightly so,” he said. “What used to be called the mummy's hand to send a shiver down the spine we now label as a mummified hand. It's a more accurate description and helps us remember it belonged to a human being like us.
“We're revising our ideas about history and politics all the time, but I don't believe in putting long explanations on labels. Everyone is free to make up their own mind about what we have on display.”
* Adults who aren't students pay £5 for an annual pass if they haven't already got one to enter the museum and its exhibitions.