Eastbourne Ancestors

Reconstruction of the Beach Head Lady
Reconstruction of the Beachy Head Lady Eastbourne Borough Council

Your Heritage

Date awarded
Location
Devonshire
Local Authority
Eastbourne
Applicant
Eastbourne Borough Council
Award Given
£73800
Eastbourne Ancestors focused on providing greater intellectual and physical access to the Eastbourne Museum Service’s human skeletal collection.

The project enabled scientific analysis of the Museum Service’s entire human skeletal collection, with forensic facial reconstruction, new interpretation, an education programme and an interactive exhibition.  These helped to improve the understanding and public awareness of the collection.

Over a 10-month period in 2014, over 25,000 visitors took part in the exhibition, house in the Pavilion Tearoom adjacent to the Redoubt Fortress, Eastbourne.

The project provided opportunities for over 300 volunteers, either as part of the ‘Bone Crew’, as excavation assistants or in putting together and eventually stewarding the exhibition.

The osteo-biography was taken for each skeleton, enabling the museum service to provide each set of remains with a life story, one of which was from sub-Saharan Africa in the Roman period. Local schools and the public were also invited to a temporary lab set up in Eastbourne Town Hall to observe and assist with this important work. The work available to view permanently at the Heritage Service Research Rooms at the Town Hall.

Read more on the project website.

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