Hull Leisure and Culture are leading on a project exploring the most unusual and intriguing objects from Hull’s museum and archive collections, which will form part of the wider celebrations of Hull’s heritage and culture taking place as part of the City of Culture year in 2017.

Cabinet of Curiousity

The project takes inspiration from William Constable’s 18th century ‘Cabinet of Curiosity’ collection, once purported to relate to mythical beasts, magic and alchemy. Local volunteers will help to develop an exhibition of objects from the internationally significant collections held by Hull Maritime Museum, the Burton Constable Foundation and Hull City Council, which include unicorn horns' (narwhal tusks), ‘scrimshaw’ (bone & ivory carvings), a stuffed brown bear, and caricatures and doodles by Hull poets Philip Larkin and Stevie Smith.

The exhibition will draw on the comedy writing talents of youngsters from 10 schools in Hull, who will mix factual and imagined interpretation to create an ‘openly populist’ and ‘light-hearted’ feel.

Revealing Hull's Heritage

This is the first grant as part of HLF’s ‘Revealing Hull’s Heritage’ initiative, which sets aside National Lottery money to fund small heritage projects in Hull during the City of Culture programme, ensuring heritage is at the heart of the city’s cultural celebrations. With the country’s eyes on Hull, HLF wants to encourage community groups in Hull to develop projects to explore, share and celebrate the fascinating stories and history that have shaped the city’s historic landscape, alongside the wider City of Culture programme in 2017.

For further information about the Revealing Hull’s Heritage campaign, please visit the HLF website, email Helen Peacock, or follow @HLFYandH on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #RevealingHull.