My museum is double barreled, including collections from both Ancient Cultures and Natural History. I tend to lean towards the natural world myself so I am very aware of the contributions to our undersatnding of it made by David Attenborough, who is 87 years old today!
David Attenborough photo source : imdb.com
Let’s all celebrate this man’s amazing life and legacy. Especially his documentary series, First Life, which explains early life before the dinosaurs.
There is an excellent series on our museum’s blog regarding the development of galleries.
http://www.rom.on.ca/en/blog/how-to-display-the-pastpart-3-curatorial-perspectives
Gallery of Chinese Architecture photo source : Lorie Pierce
Only one major gallery, the Gallery of Early Life, is yet to be developed …hopefully by the end of next year. But there are many tweaks to existing galleries and deficiencies to address that will be ongoing. Gallery development takes a team to decide what stories to tell, what artifacts to use and how to put them into a meaningful context.
I am a big believer in maps. It is how I organize my world and I personally look for them within gallery spaces. Geographical maps, timelines, any visual means to help connect the objects to time and place.
Had to show you these wonderful puppet designs by the Studio Team (headed by Chris M.) for the Early Life Weekend. I will definitely be adopting these designs for the Cambrian ‘Anomalocaris’, the Ordovician through to Devonian ‘Eurypterid’ and the all-time success story of the ancient seas, the Cambrian to Permian ‘Trilobite’.
Anomalocaris front photo source : Lorie Pierce
Anomalocaris back with paper bag puppet sleeve photo source : Lorie Pierce
Learn more about this T-Rex of the Cambrian ocean at this website :
http://burgess-shale.rom.on.ca/en/fossil-gallery/view-species.php
Eurypterid front photo source : Lorie Pierce
Eurypterid back photo source : Lorie Pierce
Known as Sea Scorpions, these were actually chelicerates who are now extinct and have no descendants. All its legs for swimming, walking and eating are attached under its head. We have one from New York State in our museum which is over 6 feet tall.
Eurypterids, sometimes known as sea scorpions, were predatory marine arthropods (joint-legged animals without a backbone) that lacked mineralized hard parts. The huge, claw-bearing pterygotids were preserved only under exceptional conditions and mostly in shallow lagoonal settings.This composite specimen of the giant eurypterid Acutiramus was restored from several matching fragments found at a single locality in New York State. Pieces of smaller specimens occur in the Silurian rocks of southern Ontario. Location: New York Collection Date: 2001 AD source : rom.on.ca
Trilobite front photo source : Lorie Pierce
Trilobite back photo source : Lorie Pierce
Trilobites were amazing. They were one of the most successful animals that ever lived on our planet, lasting 300 million years as a species until dying off with 80 – 90 % of everything else at the end of the Permian Era (250 mya). They also make the most beautiful fossils and are iconic emblems of the ancient oceans.
Learn about the Trilobite Beds on Mt.Stephen in Yoho, B.C. at this website : http://burgess-shale.rom.on.ca/en/history/discoveries/01-first.php
Since we have a lot of construction paper and lunch bags tucked away in our craft cabinet, I think this would be the idea craft to add into our Around the Museum event. Thursday is our prep meeting and we will have a lot of pieces to cut out.
Lorie at Early Life touch table photo source : Kiron Mukherjee
Caught in action doing what I love. Telling people about life in the oceans before the dinosaurs. In particular, the Middle Cambrian life found in the amazing fossil deposits of the Burgess Shale in Yoho, B.C. Above me a case with rope lava from Hawaii, amethyst geode from Brazil and a Paloma Picasso gem necklace. On the table, a fossil coral, the papercraft Anomalocaris and pieces from the Parks Canada Burgess Shale kit. I’m holding the knitted nautiloid (see previous post).
Oops!
rock outcrop in Brazil from International Space Station photo source : Cmdr. Chris Hadfield aboard ISS
The next event was scheduled to be on the topic of Rocks, Minerals and Space. However, it would only work if we could borrow one of the 3 types of Edukits of these topics. As it turns out, none are available for the time of the event so this topic will be moved forward into the summer.
What to do now? Well, all that good planning for the Rocks, Minerals and Space event will pay off in the future. For now, it will sit in a box. Instead, I will move to Plan B.
Now that we have done half a dozen topics from Dinosaurs, to Medieval Europe to Awesome Animals, it is time to do an ‘Around the Museum’ event that dips into all these topics at the same time. Activities will be chosen from the areas of Bats & Birds, Ancient Egypt and Dinosaurs with some Medieval Europe in the Toddler’s area.
Although it is good to have a Plan B, it is better for me to check ahead and not assume a resource will be available.
It was the first. Orbiting the Earth from 1986 until its re-entry in 2001, MIR was the place where mankind learned how to live in small confined zero-gravity spaces. I chanced upon an MIR model about to be recycled. Hopefully I will figure out how to build it for the Rocks, Mineral and Space event. The box says it does not require gluing so….it should be a snap.
MIR space station building model photo source : Lorie Pierce
I’ll keep you posted on our progress, Houston.
I have found two styles of volcanoes for the next event. Here’s the first to colour, fold and glue.
colour a Pacman shaped flat volcano photo source : Lorie Pierce
fold and glue into shield volcano photo source : Lorie Pierce
Add a flume to the top!
The other style is based on a wood slotted model. It would be made out of card stock paper and would not need to be coloured ahead of time. Maybe I’ll have a couple of these for the kids who don’t like to colour.
wood slotted volcano photo source : Lorie Pierce
This volcano is from a Wild Republic set and includes dinosaurs.
bridal tea photo source : Lorie Pierce
What a gorgeous site….and I got to take one home! An event I am sure to remember.
The next event features Rocks, Minerals and Space…with (no doubt) a few fossils thrown in somewhere. What a better opportunity to highlight the achievements of two notable Canadian astronauts. One who just spoke at our museum, Roberta Bondar, and the other Chris Hadfield, who is orbiting Earth in the ISS as I type this blog.
I found this astronaut papercraft on the UHU.com website.
here’s the original craft from UHU, the glue stick people photo source UHU.com
And the male version of the same craft.
male version photo source : UHU.com
Now just another step to personalize them for the event. Add in the faces.
astronaut cubees photo source : Lorie Pierce
bottom of cubee photo source : Lorie Pierce
Note that if you do this papercraft….the original template needed a bit of revision so that the bottom flap was the correct size to cover the end.
I credit being the child of parents who grew up during the Great Depression for my tendency to save things….although I do know my grandparents were good role models for the same behaviour. Over the last few years I have come across an number of items I scooped and stored away. Now that I am planning the Rock, Mineral and Space event, I’m opening my cupboards to see what I had in storage that might now be used.
portion of DAWN spaceprobe papercraft photo source : Lorie Pierce
Here’s what I found.
All these items were headed for the trash when they crossed my path. Now they get to join us on a spring afternoon as we marvel at the world or rocks and outer space.