Thursday 25 April 2019

Maps, dragons and tiger-leopards


A golden dragon sits on a crumpled map

First Hoards events 

Buxton Museum and Art Gallery




what direction for an enchanted compass?
We never really know what’s going to happen on an event. We can be fairly sure of the materials we will use and the general direction of activity but it is hard, when planning for dragons, to anticipate Dandelion Cats

We have started plotting the stories of our hoards now

There were maps to take you to a hidden hoard if you are clever enough to decipher the clues and brave enough to risk the dangers…

Under the sea?
In a pyramid?
Near the swings in the park?
On the other side of the moon?
Surrounded by trees and fiercely guarded by a cat!
Where will you hide your treasure? 
And how will you know how to find it?



one side tiger, t'other leopard....



Today, there were dragons hatching from golden eggs to guard golden hoards….or maybe not. Hence the Dandelion Cats who guard golden flowers for bumblebees. There were several very laid back foxes who could sort of, maybe, OK now and then, guard, well, something. Someone had said, you know, Someone asked them to…well, someone offered to pay…but what are pennies to a fox who is counting rabbits?




And there is an ongoing question: what do you value? 
What is the precious thing that you would keep safe for centuries? 
Would it be golden wonders? 
Or a pottery ball full of coins? 
Or seeds for a future flowering? 
Friendship?

Dandelion Cat
And there was Molly, the Tiger Leopard, guarding her wonderful little Leopard Cub, the rarest cub in all the world. And there was Bessie the Bear with her Unicorns who were very interested in that same cub…..


The next Hoards events are as follows. All these events are at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery and all events are free and unless it says otherwise, you can just turn up and join in. With talks please arrive for the scheduled start. For other events allow 30 minutes at least for the activity.


1. Dave the Moneyer, Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th April, 12 – 3.30pm. Come and watch how money used to be made….

DAve's own company, Grunal Moneta, can be visited, here

see note at end of entry
2. Talk: Hoards and hordes – the Viking conquest and settlement of the East Midlands,
Tuesday 30 April, 11am–12noon Join British Museum curator Gareth Williams to find out how archaeological discoveries combine with historical evidence and place-names to shape our understanding of the Viking presence in Derbyshire and surrounds.


3. Managing your own Hoard
Thursday 2 May, 12noon–4pm
Get information on handling household finances and managing debt from the money advisors at Citizens Advice Derbyshire District.

4. Treasure Chests 
Sunday 5 May, 12noon–3.30pm
Make and take a treasure chest for the hoard you haven't got yet...or that you might be hiding under the bed. In a sock. With a dragon. Allow 45 minutes.
More information:


Or call Buxton Museum and Art Gallery on 01629 533540

These events are for Buxton Museum and Art Gallery as part of the Hoards Event Programme. Some of them are Creeping Toad activities. Others belong to the wider events programme and we just think they are lovely and should be supported….

Hoards: a hidden history of ancient Britain
A British Museum and Salisbury Museum Partnership Exhibition
This exhibition runs from Saturday 13th April to Sunday 16th June, 2019 in Buxton Museum and Art Gallery

Vikings: we had a Viking today with a very big, very fluffy beard who sailed away in an eggshell boat - probably following a treasure map drawn by a fox.... 

And many thanks to our friends from the Bumblebee Conservation Trust who joined us on Sunday on such a lovely day we had hardly any visitors!







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