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Category: Videos
Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Videos
Dan DenDanto and the Maine State Museum’s Whale Exhibit
On October 24, 2024, the Friends of the Maine State Museum welcomed Dan DenDanto of Allied Whale as the featured speaker for their annual meeting. Dan walked the audience through the work he has been doing to prepare two whale skeletons, an adult female humpback (known as Vector to the scientists that tracked her) and […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Staff Happenings, Videos
Mystery Tusk: Searching for Elephants in the Maine Woods
Gary Hoyle, author and former Natural History Curator at the Maine State Museum, discussed his book, Mystery Tusk: Searching for Elephants in the Maine Woods, at the Friends of the Maine State Museum annual meeting on October 19, 2023. His illustrated talk described one of his great achievements for the museum: the 1993 excavation of […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Staff Happenings, Videos
Humpback Whale Skeleton-Maine State Museum Exhibit
These two humpback whale skeletons are currently being cleaned and prepared for exhibit by Whales and Nails, a company located in Seal Cove, Maine. The Skill and knowledge behind Whales and Nails is Dan DenDanto. A senior scientist with Allied Whale at the College of the Atlantic, Dan has been cleaning, restoring, and articulating whale […]
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Around the Kennebec Valley: The Herman Bryant Collection Presentation by Author Gay Grant
On October 20, 2022, author Gay Grant presented a slideshow about her latest book Around the Kennebec Valley: The Herman Bryant Collection – featuring images from one of the Maine State Museum’s most significant photograph collections. Watch the video below to learn more!
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Videos
Exploring Exhibits & Objects up Close: Back to Nature Exhibit
Celebrate the museum’s Back to Nature exhibit which opened almost 50 years ago! Join us in saying goodbye to an old friend! The Maine State Museum’s beloved Back to Nature exhibit opened almost 50 years ago. The natural scenes were painstakingly created or collected one plant and creature at a time. In this behind-the-scenes video, […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Staff Happenings, Videos
MSM Freezer for Conservation
The Maine State Museum is up and running with an important, though at first glance surprising, new collections care tool – a walk-in freezer, with over 750 cubic feet of space and the ability to reach temperatures below -10 degrees Fahrenheit. The freezer has found its home in the museum’s natural science collection storage space. […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Videos
Museum Moments: The Ice Box
The rise in the use of ice by individuals was in part due to the improvements in ice boxes, specifically incorporating insulation and circulation for better food preservation. By the mid 1800’s the ice box was commonly found in middle class American homes. The Kennebec River dominated the ice harvesting industry in Maine, providing more […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Staff Happenings, Videos
Behind the Scenes-Irish Elk Antlers
Major work to remove asbestos from structural steel beams throughout the museum has meant careful work in advance to remove objects and specimens from display so that they remain safe and protected. Displayed high on a wall on the entrance floor, the museum’s stunning set of Irish elk antlers, with a spread of nearly nine […]
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Objects, Artifacts, & Specimens, Videos
Behind the Scenes- Industrial Objects
Major work to remove asbestos from structural steel beams throughout the museum has meant careful work in advance to remove objects and specimens from display so that they remain safe and protected. Get a behind the scenes look at the changes afoot. See the remarkable work of Auburn-based company Cote Crane and Rigging, as they […]
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Museum Moments: E.T. Burrowes Car
The E.T. Burrowes Company was located on the current site of the Cross-Insurance Arena in Portland. They were known for making sliding window screens and later pool tables. They also made a total of about 20 cars. In 1908 workers from the Portland Company (located on Fore Street in Portland) were enlisted to build the […]
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