ECCENTRIC artwork and unusual heirlooms exhibited on a ‘fourth plinth’ have been winning admiring and puzzled glances at an Oxford University museum.

On August 1, curators at the Museum of the History of Science in Broad Street asked the public to dig out their own treasures and curios so they could be displayed on the plinth.

The unusual show was inspired by the Fourth Plinth in London’s Trafalgar Square, which is used to exhibit public sculpture or artwork.

The latest exhibit on the plinth in the museum’s entrance gallery is a mixed media exhibit entitled Rose in Winter by Barbara Mercer.

The Victorian medicine cabinet, contains a pastel drawing of a single rose, incorporating the names of old roses removed from Oxford Botanic Garden in 2009.

Other strange items submitted for display include a plaiting machine made of Lego, a Victorian machine that turns pages of sheet music, and a pair of 18th century storm glasses used to predict weather patterns.

Museum spokesman Laura Ashby said each exhibit remained on the plinth for about three days.

She said: “There have been some fascinating entries for our fourth plinth so far, and we plan to continue this feature until October 16 because it is very popular with visitors.

“We borrowed the idea of the fourth plinth from Antony Gormley’s One and Other project in Trafalgar Square in 2009, so we are really excited that he has agreed to lend us one of his sculptures on the plinth in the last week of the project.”

Some visitors have brought their own strange exhibits from abroad after reading about the initiative online.

In August, Verne Peterson from Chicago brought 3D geometric cubes and shapes, and two of the objects exhibited, the Victorian music page turner, and the storm glasses, have been donated to the museum.

Ms Ashby added: “We are very grateful for the donations which will now become a permanent part of the museum collection. People have really enjoyed taking part in this. They like influencing what is on show in the museum.”

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