Of parasites, dinosaurs, and other model animals
Elaine Charwat has been on a journey into the attic storerooms behind the scenes of the Museum to discover 19th-century wax models of parasites. A strange occupation you might think, but it’s all part of her doctoral research programme with the Arts and Humanities Research Council to learn about the use of models and replicas… Continue reading →
On the trail of the evolution of mammals
Elsa Panciroli recently joined the Museum research team as an Early Career Leverhulme Research Fellow. Elsa is a Scottish palaeontologist, whose studies focus on the early evolutionary origins of mammals, working extensively on fossils from the Isle of Skye. Here she tells us how her work will combine studies of mammal evolution with stunning new… Continue reading →
Babylon: Natural Theology versus Scientific Naturalism
When the campaign to build the Museum was launched, science at Oxford was understood as natural theology. By the time the Museum opened in 1860, a new secular approach to science was on the rise. In this last episode of the Temple of Science podcast series we see how the art and science of the Museum responded to… Continue reading →
‘Chambers of the Ministering Priests’
The Museum was not originally simply a museum as we understand it today: It was an entire science faculty. In episode four of the Temple of Science podcast series we see how the museum’s overarching principle of design – that art should be used to teach science and to inspire generations of scientists – was… Continue reading →
The Sanctuary of the Temple of Science
The central court of the Museum was described by one founder as ‘the sanctuary of the Temple of Science’. In the third episode of the Temple of Science podcast series we see how every detail of this unique space was carefully planned and crafted to form a comprehensive model of natural science. You can watch… Continue reading →
‘God’s own Museum’
In the second episode of the Temple of Science podcast series we take a closer look at the decoration on the outside of the Museum building. From the outset, Oxford University Museum wanted to teach the principles of natural history through art as well as science. The carvings around the windows of the façade, incorporating… Continue reading →
Celebrating 160 years of the Museum
It goes without saying that 2020 has been a very unusual and troubled year, but it is also the 160th anniversary of the founding of the Museum, so we wanted to snatch a little breather from the difficulties of the pandemic, if possible, to take a positive look at the past and future of the… Continue reading →
Drawn to life
By Rachel Simpson Worms, fish and … Greenland? Hugely different topics which all have one thing in common – the Museum’s First Animals exhibition online lecture series. Running every other Wednesday from May until September 2020, this series provided a fantastic insight into a wide range of topics about how the first animals lived, died,… Continue reading →
Bees use shark ‘supersense’ to help find food
This article is taken from European research magazine Horizon as part of our partnership to share natural environment science stories with readers of More than a Dodo. Armed with sensitive antennae and wide-angled compound eyes, bees have a sophisticated set of senses to help them search out pollen and nectar as they buzz from flower to flower.… Continue reading →
High-tech insect origami
By Dr Ricardo Pérez-de la Fuente, Research Fellow Earwigs are fascinating creatures. Belonging to the order Dermaptera, these insects can be easily recognised by their rear pincers, which are used for hunting, defence, or mating. But perhaps the most striking feature of earwigs is usually hidden – most can fly with wings that are folded… Continue reading →
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