A County Durham museum's bid to bring back to life its famous Silver Swan automaton has seen a crowdfunding campaign launched to help fund the final leg of the project.
A sum of £146,324 has already been donated to The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to delicately restore the 1773 life-sized solid silver curio containing 2,000 moving parts.
However, a further £18,000 is needed to reach the project's target of £199,142, as the museum seeks to raise the funds with Art Fund Art Happens by December 6.
Donators to the campaign have been promised to win exclusive awards including swan postcards, a behind-the-scenes look at the swan and even the chance to wind the Silver Swan for its first performance since 2020.
Kelly Smith, the museum's Director of Development and Communications, said: “This is a really exciting campaign that we're hoping will touch that sense of pride that people in the community feel towards the Silver Swan.
“It has a special place in people's memories, from them remembering their grandparents putting a sixpence in the slot to make it perform to being spellbound by its graceful movements.
“We are grateful to the Art Fund for helping us to put together this campaign.”
Work to restore and conserve the Silver Swan is being carried out by the Cumbria Clock Company alongside a team from The Bowes Museum itself.
Following the National Lottery grant funding the project, Hannah Fox, The Bowes Museum’s Executive Director, spoke of the impact the swan can have on the next generation.
“Thank you to The National Lottery Heritage Fund for supporting this project, we are delighted with the outcome of our grant application.
“The Silver Swan is incredibly important to our communities. We can’t wait to get started and inspire the next generation of artists, makers, designers, and inventors.”
There will also be a series of projects for the public to get involved with from talks to workshops in the run up to Christmas.
People are able to donate to the crowdfunding campaign at http://artfund.org/silverswan or by contacting the museum on 01833 690606.
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