Today is International Museum Day!
Museums and galleries are important houses for culture, preserving histories and collections so everyone can enjoy them and especially learn from the past. One of our saddest collection items are these moa bones. These majestic, huge birds once covered New Zealand until they were hunted to extinction 200 years after humans arrived on the islands.
The birds were huge and the current thinking is that their heads bowed down to the ground so they could eat lowland grasses and shrubs.
Through using collection items, we can see mistakes and consequences from the past and learn from them. These bones help us remember the fragility and importance of the balance of the ecosystem. Sadly, the same practices are still happening across the world where animals are still being hunted to the brink of extinction. Today, even the common giraffe is now an endangered animal due to over hunting. We hope never to see giraffe bones in a museum because they are now extinct.
Museum Day Activity
Make your own Time Capsule!
You can make your own collection by creating a time capsule. Choose 10 or so items that are important to you right now, it could be photographs, an object, a letter or diary, a Covid-19 experience, or simply a snapshot of a day in the life of you. Remember to add the date!
Place it all in a sturdy container and bury it in the garden, or hide it under the house, in the attic, in a cupboard or somewhere where it will stay for a number of years. Time capsules can be left for decades or even a year- that is up to you! Check out this article for more ideas about creating a time capsule.
