The latest exhibition at Abingdon Museum features trains that once ran on the Abingdon branch line,

planes that flew from RAF Abingdon,

and automobiles made at the Abingdon MG works. The exhibition has interesting display boards and a series of films about the different transports. I have not seen them all yet but found the film about the closure of the branch line very good.

The exhibition is from 7th January to 26th March 2023 on the museum’s first floor, up 37 steps. Find out more at https://www.abingdon.gov.uk/event/exhibition-planes-trains-automobiles-7-01-to-26-03-2023

Abingdon Museum will be closed during the Christmas Holidays.

This afternoon was the last chance to see the ‘Common Land’ exhibition by Kate Hammersley.

A film called ‘Convalescence’ recorded an area of common land throughout the year. The film was recorded as Kate recovered from cancer treatment. Another film called ‘Roam’ followed deer tracks through a wheat field on the farm where she grew up.

In cabinets were sketches of the 360-degree scene of the common land as she stood and turned and drew. This was reproduced on a square block in the museum. There were also framed drawings from the Alps, showing huge mountains in miniature.

The 23rd of December was the eve of Christmas Eve. On the Radio Oxford travel news, I heard of long queues at the Orchard Centre in Didcot and Banbury town centre. By comparison, Abingdon town centre was calm. There was a star over the County Hall Museum.

As part of Heritage Open Days at the weekend, Abingdon Baptist Church was open and had an exhibition by Abingdon Flower Club. A lot of work had gone into the displays. At the hall’s centre, a bouquet had been placed with a picture of the late Queen with a candle burning. On the stage, a cross decorated with flowers echoed the neon cross behind.

The other flowers were grouped into the four seasons, starting with Spring

and then to summer with tea on the lawn.

There were bare branches and cotton wool and sparkles for winter. But before winter, autumn was shown with red and orange and purple flowers and some twirling looping flowers like fireworks and a harvest festival display of homely produce. Nowadays, harvest festivals are more likely to include tins or packets so that donations can be used by organisations such as the homeless and asylum welcome.

There have been harvests this September, and two people sent me pictures of the Green Gym cutting hay. More of them tomorrow.

Anne sent me a reminder that September 24th will be the Oxfordshire Great Big Green Week, with activities under the museum arches, and apple pressing and eco-art in the basement.

Abingdon Museum has an exhibition about some reptiles, fish and floaty creatures that might have been found in Jurassic times when Abingdon would have been a sea.

There are fossils and information boards describing creatures such as Ichthyosaurs, Pliasaurs, Plesiosaurs, Leedsichthys problematicus, Shastasaurs, Ammonites & Belemnites.

A large aquarium containing one large sea creature can be viewed through a VR headset. The VR headset has been popular and will be used in future with different VR films.

This weekend, the museum website https://www.abingdon.gov.uk/abingdon-county-hall-museum  has details for a talk by the palaeontology professor from Portsmouth about the Pliosaurus (or Abingdon Sea Monster).