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Poster from Natural Sciences Collections Association Conference 2017

Title: Something Fishy: The Leedsichthys Project Author(s): Wass, G. Source: Wass, G. (2017). Something Fishy: The Leedsichthys Project. Evolving Ideas: Provocative new ways of working with collections (Natural Sciences Collections Association Conference). Cambridge, UK, 20‐21 April 2017. London: Natural Sciences Collections Association. URL: http://www.natsca.org/poster/2394

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GLENYS WASS, HERITAGE COLLECTIONS MANAGER glenys.wass@vivacity-peterborough.com VIVACITY- PETERBOROUGH MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY www.bigjurassicfish.com

New Ways – reeling it in bigjurassicfish.com Issy and the The Project The vision was to interpret of Public Abstract the Leedsichthys find through Leedsichthys an online exhibition, to Engagement Instead of developing an The Leedsichthys project was a MA Esmée Fairburn grant In 2015 Peterborough Museum was awarded a grant of address the many difficulties additional school session, the funded project centred around a Leedsichthys specimen in £65,300 from the MA Esmée Fairburn Collections Fund to of displaying the original education team wanted to Peterborough Museum. The specimen was excavated from deliver the project. specimen. The online exhibition use the project to think about the local brick pits in 2002 and is the most complete specimen This involved working with shows where the bones were engaging and supporting of this giant Jurassic fish ever found. The project used this Dr Jeff Liston to identify originally found, the story school visits in a different internationally important research specimen to deliver scientific and document the bones, continues with the bones rising way. They instead asked for outcomes in addition to a wide programme of public activity. training existing staff and out from the map and into the online resources for pre and We brought together all teams across the heritage service to volunteers to prepare, skeleton of the Leedsichthys post school visits to support produce a website, half term events, innovative marketing conserve and pack the fish. The visitor can then find existing complementary never done before. The book strategies, and even publish a children’s book! www.bigjurassicfish.com remaining bones, and to out more by selecting up to school sessions., and to ‘Issy and the Leedsichthys’ deliver a website designed Dr. Jeff Liston, world expert on Leedsichthys 20 individual bones to be develop a ‘story sack’ to use was produced working in to help interpret the specimen for the public. The website able to see a 3D image with To achieve this vision, the in the Museum’s Jurassic conjunction with a graphic would also be a first stop for researchers, and act as a gateway layers of information, before project used 3D photo gallery. The focus of the new illustrator, and is aimed The Starting Point to Peterborough Museum’s wider important Jurassic marine the skeleton then changes telemetry for the first time, story sack was an original at younger children. The – getting hooked reptile and fossil fish collection. Alongside this the project into an interpretation of what and had to produce the first new story book based on the resulting publication has been wanted to deliver some public engagement events, and a Leedsichthys might have ever full skeleton drawing of a Leedsichthys and Jurassic a success and in addition Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery is home to the most resource for schools. looked like, as it swims away. Leedsichthys, as none existed. collection at the Museum. to the story sack, has been complete specimen of the Leedsichthys fish ever found, Writing a fiction story book the focal point for sessions from the Jurassic Oxford Clays, 150 million years ago. It was based on the collections is with preschools, and also originally discovered in the Whittlesey brick pits in 2002, by The Big Jurassic Fish Hunt something the Museum had used in partnership with the students from Portsmouth University. Funding was secured to Taking Shape Story sack, Peterborough library service Leedsichthys was used as the fossils, and estimating size featuring ‘Issy and excavate the specimen over a two year period and the bones – a new way of working the Leedsichthys’ for Science week school focal point for the delivery through comparative anatomy. original story book were then initially researched by Dr Jeff Liston (then at the sessions. Copies have gone This project took a fresh of Peterborough Museum’s In addition, visitors got to Hunterian Museum) as part of his PhD thesis, before returning approach to the management to all Peterborough libraries February half term activities, talk to the team of volunteers to their permanent home at Peterborough Museum. Although and delivery by bringing in addition to neighbouring targeted at a family audience. and experts preparing the funding was secured for excavation, there was no funding together a project board at county libraries in Suffolk, To introduce and engage the Leedsichthys skull bones. for any detailed post excavation research, preparation of the the start, which included staff Cambridgeshire, and audience with the subject ‘Dr. bones, storage or interpretation for the public. Many of the from marketing, front of house, Bedfordshire. Jurassic Jeff’ became the face Over 2,600 visitors were 2,000 plus bones found were prepared by a group of geology Nigel Larkin, palaeontological conservator, events, education, collections training staff and volunteers of the marketing for the event, reached over the week, with volunteers supervised by staff at Peterborough Museum, and senior management. By challenging visitors to come over 88% of those surveyed however, this work had never been completed. engaging across the board and having a clear shared idea of the vision for the project, the whole service was able to support and and help him ‘research’ the saying they learnt something feel personally invested in the project. Leedsichthys fish. new. This event demonstrated The project aimed to address the following: that collections The project board then worked with Dr Jeff Liston alongside FABULOUS, FUN-FILLED, FAMILY-FRIENDLY, FOSSIL FISH FEBRUARY Summary Visitors were encouraged at the core of a dedicated set of geology volunteers, and the Heritage The Big jurassic Over 2,000 unidentified and uncatalogued bones Fish Hunt to be a palaeontologist an event can IT’S GOING TO BE Collections Manager. AT PETERBOROUGH MUSEUM Fin-tastic! The project was unique for Peterborough Museum in the 5 large blocks that were unprepared and not conserved FEB Half Term for a day, undertaking attract as great Mon 15 – Fri 19 AM 10 – 5PM (last entry 4pm) way that it was delivered bringing in an expert to work with An internationally important specimen relatively A professional palaeontological conservator, Nigel Larkin, was different science based tasks an audience as staff pulled from across all sectors of the service to engage inaccessible for research contacted to train volunteers and existing staff seconded from including: Palaeoart, studying more different areas in the service, to prepare the remaining fossil and enthuse about this uniquely important specimen. The Bones that were too fragile to display in 3D microfossils, stratigraphic popularist CHILDREN £3.00 project successfully entwined scientific research and public bones, and look at the best way to store them. This helped upskill adults £4.00 Families £12.00 dating by identifying zone subjects! (2 adults, up to 3 children) A specimen too large to reconstruct in gallery Under 5s FREE WITH staff and volunteers to improve sustainability in the future, in a Dr Jurassic Jeff engagement, demonstrating that putting the collection and

Difficult for the public to interpret these individual Image Credit: ‘The Big Fish’ Leedsichthys Problematicus ©Copyright Bob Nicholls, 2011 (paleocreations.com) way simply outsourcing the preparation of the bones would not FOR MORE INFORMATION: Find us on Facebook Badge research at the core of the offer can still deliver an exciting and The Big Jurassic Fish Hunt, vivacity-peterborough.com/bigjurassicfishCMYK / .eps Peterborough Peterborough Museum PHONE: 01733 864 663 Priestgate, Peterborough, Museum Like us on Facebook featuring Dr Jurassic Jeff Cambridgeshire, PE1 1LF /vivacitypeterboroughmuseum Follow us on Twitter Vivacity_Museum have done. HAVE YOU UNLOCKED bones as a fish THE PRIESTGATE VAULTS YET? successful public engagement offer, smashing visitor targets.

Acknowledgements Thanks also to Forterra for their continued support of the museum. Thanks to Nigel Larkin for training the staff and volunteers in conservation and fossil Collections project team: Dr. Jeff Liston, David Savory, Emma Turvey, Glenys Wass preparation, SPEED for working with us to deliver the website, Jarrold Publishing and Collections project volunteers: Ivor Crowson, Bill Leayrod, Pam Osbourne, Project Board: Carol Law, Laura Hancock, Stephen Chalmers, Charli Vince for her excellent illustration work. Darren Withers, Naomi Stevenson Sandy Wardrop, Jack Allen, Richard Hunt, Sarah Wilson, Glenys Wass