The Charleston Museum to present a new natural history exhibit in its Lobby Gallery
March 23, 2016
In May of 2016, The Charleston Museum will present Skeletons in the Closet: Exploring Skeletal Anatomy, a special natural history exhibit in the Museum’s Lobby Gallery.
.
Skeletons in the Closet will display selections from the Museum’s extensive collection of animal skeletons accumulated and prepared by nineteenth century curator Gabriel E. Manigault. This upcoming exhibit, on display from May 6, 2016 to January 6, 2017, is part of a series of special exhibits featuring highlights from the Museum’s natural history collections to raise awareness of its upcoming Natural History Gallery renovation, scheduled for next year.
.
More About the Exhibit:
.
Gabriel E. Manigault became Curator of The Charleston Museum in 1873 when it was still a part of the College of Charleston. Before and during his time as Curator of the Museum, he collected and mounted skeletons of animals from around the globe. In various biological fields such as zoology or paleontology, scientists look for similar characteristics in an animal’s body shape, or morphology, to better understand the relationships between different animal groups. Thanks to technological advancements, scientists are now able to integrate genetic information into their studies; however, developmental changes seen in bones are still an excellent way to understand the relationships between the diverse regions of the animal kingdom. Using numerous specimens collected by Manigault, this exhibit will explore the similar bone structures shared between fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
.
.
