Visitors have been flocking to a Lichfield museum where a new display is bringing historic ideas and inventions to life.
More than 500 people attended the launch of the Inventions Exhibition at Erasmus Darwin House.
The display include a three-metre long flying bird and a talking machine based on Darwin’s ideas.
The new exhibits have been funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and local charitable trusts Swinfen Broun and Conduit Lands.
Sarah Elsom, High Sheriff of Staffordshire, was one of the first people to see the new displays. She said: “The exhibits at Darwin House underline once again how far ahead of his time Erasmus Darwin was.
“Models show him grappling with concepts such as mechanical flight and a speaking machine. I wonder whether the people of Lichfield knew then what a scientific and engineering genius they had living in their midst.”
For more details on Erasmus Darwin House – including opening times – visit www.erasmusdarwin.org.
