A Mammoth Night at the Museum

A Mammoth Night at the Museum

February the 14th - St Valentines days. Whilst other folks may be planning proposals of marriage, declarations of love, secret gestures of affection, or romantic rendezvous, a group of 150 people gathered to celebrate the love of all things paleo and mammoth, at the Corinium Museum in Cirencester.

 

The accumulation of hundreds of hours of digging on site at the Mammoth Graveyard in Cerney Wick, plus preparation and conservation, to get the finds ready to go on display. Just six months from mud to museum, and the grand opening of “Mammoths of the Museum’ exhibition was a joyous affair.

The exhibition, displaying items from the 2023 and primarily the 2024 dig, was passionately and carefully put together by Nev and Sally Hollingworth, who also arrange the opening night, with their usual flare.

The Rock Showman - Steve Cousins

 

It really is something to celebrate, often finds, go to museum and a few may go on display but many go into storage for study and research purposes, so getting to see the items volunteers have pulled from the reach on exhibition in one place it truly special.

 

The night was full of surprises too, we met and mingled in the beautiful cavernous meeting space at the front of the Corinium Museum, under the watchful gaze of Wallace and full-sized inflatable woolly mammoth courtesy of Dinomania. The evening was compèred with wit and energy by Rock Showman Steve Cousins, and had speeches from Sally and Nev and the landowners Hill Quarry products.

 

After an amazing announcement, the lights were turned off and the exhibition unveiled, viewed by candlelight (battery powered candlelight anyway) Neanderthal style, which was rather romantic and definitively a memorable way of viewing the exhibits. At the same time Wally the mammoth was unleashed, with his Dinomania Ranger as carperone/bodyguard.

 

Turning on of the light brought cake, (with some familiar cake toppers - my paleo mammoth on the big cakes!) 

Then The Pointy End, did a flint napping demonstration, whilst the Mammoth Trail was unveiled, with my mammoths in various historical dress, hidden around the museum.

The Pointy End 

 

Lastly, there was limited edition print sales of some of my mammoth and a hand axe by Tom Sermon of PaleoArt.com, with all money raised going back into the dig/conservation/exhibition fund, and a talk by Mark Baggott from The Herefordshire & Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust - Fossil Box initiative that brings curriculum supportive fossil boxes into school.

 

the evening concluded with wine, and a visit to the neighbouring water hole.

It was an amazing event, and one that won’t be forgotten. Whet’s it they say? Mammoths never forget!

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