Catching up with the carpet beetle and other stories

These images aren't from the Old House Museum's collection. Thanks, or rather, no thanks to the discovery of carpet beetle, the costumes and textiles have been under wraps, in the freezer, packed up in storage and off limits to the visitors for most of the season! When I visited the Manx Museum in September I took these photos of a lovely Edwardian dress, a knitting pattern for a WW1 balaclava,a Manx national costume and a model Viking. With the exception of the traditional Manx outfit these could all relate to Bakewell and its history. A rare Anglo Saxon artefact, the metal decorative piece at the end of a belt, has recently been found here. The Vikings came through and the crosses in the churchyard and surrounding area tell the tale of the spread and absorption of early Christianity as it adapted Viking religious iconography. The Isle of Man has a similar story in stone carvings. The process of getting rid of the beetle and altering the museum environment to make it less likely for it to come back will continue during the closed season, the winter months. Grants have been awarded for some of the costs. Wild Raven, a fantastic evening of art, photography, poetry and music raised funds and spirits. Thornbridge Brewery's beer of the same name was successfully showcased too! The Museum is still looking for volunteers to help pack and process the collection. Please get in touch if you can help. At the end of the 2014 season the Museum can look back on a challenging time. A huge Thankyou to all who have helped in so many different ways to make it a success. This blog is going to take a break for a few months, but don't forget that the Museum will be open for a special Christmas weekend, the 13th and 14th of December.

What's in a name

This small sculpture belonged to the Nightingale family, who had links to Derbyshire.Florence Nightingale's father built a textile business at Lea Mills, near Cromford and the family lived at Lea Hall when Florence was young. In later life she supported the Holloway reading room and Lea school.She was an invalid for many years after her involvement in the Crimean War and died in 1910 at the age of ninety. This statue was donated to the Old House Museum, along with a tiny blouse said to have belonged to Florence herself. At first it seemed too Edwardian in style, but on realising that she lived into the twentieth century, it seemed possible that it could have belonged to her. This sculpture belonged to Florence's sister Parthenope. Nowadays celebrities name their children after the cities where they were conceived. Too much information! Florence and her sister were named after the Italian cities where they were born. Florence is obvious. Parthenope is the Greek version of Naples (and is pronounced like Penelope).