From Monday 15 May, the Giant Irish Deer skeleton, Oisin, who lives at Warwick’s Market Hall Museum, will have something of a makeover.
The skeleton was originally assembled in the mid nineteenth century following excavation from a peat bog in Ireland. Since then, the 13,000-year-old skeleton has developed a few creaks and cracks, partly due to the weight of the skull and antlers, and the process of constructing the original iron mounts.
A commissioned professional conservator will work to right a few of the wrongs, make good a few cracks and chips, and generally clean up the skeleton, which has accumulated a lot of ground-in dirt and dust over the decades. The makeover will involve removing Oisin’s head and antlers, although thankfully only temporarily.
The Giant Deer lived roughly 500,000 to 8,000 years ago, ranging from Siberia to Ireland. They measured up to 2.1m (7ft) at the shoulder with impressive antlers measuring up to 3.6m (12ft) from tip to tip. Their remains are best known from Ireland, where countless skeletons and bones turned up in the peat bogs as they were dug on a large scale for fuel.
Warwickshire Museum’s Irish Giant Deer was named ‘Oisin’ (Gaelic for ‘young deer’) by public vote in 2010. Oisin is now something of a celebrity on the social media network Twitter, where he comments on museum activities, news, natural history, archaeology and more (@OisinTheDeer on Twitter).
Visitors to the museum can also currently enjoy a new exhibition which tells the story of Horace Boyer’s journey from India to Leamington Spa in 1947. The exhibition is part of the Heritage and Culture Warwickshire’s Our Commonwealth project.
Horace’s daughter has very kindly lent the items that are on display. The family treasures first tell the story of Horace’s early life in Lonavala, India (near to present-day Mumbai). Alongside attending boarding school, Horace was a champion athlete who competed in the then Indian Olympic Games and a selection of his winning cups can be seen.
Warwickshire County Council’s portfolio holder for Environment, Climate and Culture, Cllr Heather Timms, said:
“It is of great importance that our expert curators conserve and protect Warwickshire’s museum collections for the continual enjoyment of residents and visitors alike. I look forward to seeing Oisin back at his best by the end of Spring.”
View Oisin, headless or not, at Market Hall Museum, Open Tuesday – Saturday 10am -5pm. Entrance to the museum is free. For more information about the museum, visit: The Market Hall Museum website