However, although museums and other collections represent a wealth of knowledge, this is often accessible only if mediated through people who are familiar with the collections.

Concern over loss of knowledge – as curatorial staff leave retire - is prompting a growing number of researchers to undertake oral history projects that seek to preserve cultural knowledge for the future.

Once such project was ‘Museum Lives’, a collaboration between Kingston University and the Natural History Museum that seeks to preserve the curators (less fatally the jar of pickled lizards to the right) so that their knowledge and experiences are available for future generations. A podcast about this project can be found here

 

 
Above images by Tom Hartman, School of Biology, University of Nottingham