Beamish Museum in County Durham, home to over 2.5 million items, has revealed a glimpse into its vast collection of 20th-century artifacts. The museum's curator highlights the 'wide and esoteric' nature of the objects, ranging from household appliances and bicycles to personal letters and even a collection of Marilyn Monroe memorabilia.
A museum charting 20th century life has revealed some of the weird and wonderful objects in its huge archives and which are rarely seen by the public. Beamish Museum in County Durham holds over 2.5 million items which showcase the lives of the people of north-east England.Collections head Dan Hudacheck said the museum was always looking to add to its exhibits but had to be 'very selective' about what to accept.
The objects stored in the Beamish collection rooms are unlikely to make it into its public exhibits, said Mr Hudacheck, and instead have largely been collected for archival purposes. As he walked the BBC through three large rooms with dozens of floor to ceiling shelves, he described the assortment as wide and esoteric. There are old washing machines, bikes, clocks, film reels, mining banners, personal letters and even one man's extensive Marilyn Monroe memorabilia collection.Mr Hudacheck alighted on a 1928 bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale and explained it was the second oldest in its collection.You can tell the difference between the two because the earlier version does not have the famous blue star, he said.The last object the museum had been desperate to obtain was a 'very specific' NHS orange juice bottle from the 1950s.The team wanted to put the bottle in its 1950s Welfare Hall which is an exact replica of the Leasingthorne Colliery Welfare Hall and Community Centre near Bishop Auckland. 'It took ages before we were able to locate one,' he said, but an appeal resulted in a successful outcome.Mr Hudacheck said the museum rarely asks for items because it leads to more donation offers than staff can cope with. Although the Beamish is always adding to its collection, it asks people to get in touch before dropping off donations.'We have to be quite selective,' said Mr Hudacheck, adding: 'You never know what any one day is going to hold'
Beamish Museum Archives 20Th Century Artifacts History
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