I promised you a peek behind the scenes at the (very small) museum in Bungay. I went for a quick look at lunchtime to get a feel for what I have to prioritise...

The museum is currently closed due to the pandemic, but it sits on the first floor of what is now Bungay Town Hall. It's a two room museum, packed to the rafters with bits and bobs from the town

For those who don't know, Bungay is a rural market town on the border of Norfolk and Suffolk. I was born & bred over the other side of the river from the town, & went to school here. So this place is very deeply home to me, even though it can be an odd, off the wall place

Bungay has a 12th century castle, a ruined priory, a 'Roman' well, a collection of assorted Georgian houses, and any amount of folklore and hauntings. More of the latter at another date. I digress...

The museum was established by a local doctor, Dr Leonard Cane. Dr Cane was the first curator, and had led the excavations at Bungay Castle from 1933-34. Here he is 'divining' at the Castle excavations in 1933

The collections range from mammoth bones to recent social history, and of course, a diorama of the castle (I ADORE dioramas)

Here are the oldest archaeological objects in the collection

I'm not yet sure when or how most of the archaeological finds arrived in the collection, but that's one thing I'm looking forward to working on with the help of the previous curator. I have some doubts about the attribution of a couple of objects

There are many things to do to ensure the collection continues to be cared for, accessible & secure in future, we'll be joining organisations that can help & trying to raise funds, digitise things & work on educational outreach. It's an exciting prospect in a very difficult time

And finally, I've got a new procrastination-research project, finding out more about the participants in Bungay's very own version of #TheDig