The Natural History Gallery in Wollaton Hall
One of the many amazing things about Wollaton Hall is the collection of natural history exhibits it has on display. One particularly interesting part of this display is the stuffed animals and birds. Some of these are over one hundred years old, made with the intent of preserving specimens for future generations of scientists to research on and to educate the public.
I didn’t take many photos since I didn’t want to have *too* morbid a blog post but I did take a few of the more impressive stuffed heads on the walls (okay, wow, didn’t really succeed with the avoiding being morbid thing).
It does really add to the atmosphere of the old stately home though. Some of the specimens date back to the days of Francis Willughby, the owner of the house in the 1600s who was an ornithologist and ichthyologist. In one of the rooms upstairs, more exotic specimens can be found, including an enormous giraffe and a gorilla. I once watched a little girl, who looked about 4 months old, sitting in her pram under the giraffe’s long neck and looking up in absolute awe, mouth agape in wonder. It was lovely to see.
Em, however, was equally amazed by the giraffe’s massive balls!
In the upstairs of the hall is yet another room filled with various specimens, including a huge hippo skull (modeled by Em) and a kangaroo. Sadly there were no more dead animals to touch or gape at after that.
WRITTEN BY
ReenRah 