By Ted Thornhill
You can now have the world’s most amazing museum - in your pocket.
But this is no iPhone app. Instead an enthusiast has collated some of the planet’s most amazing artefacts and presented them in a space small enough to be held in your hand.
Hans Fex says he has spent his life collecting things that have caused him wonder. These items range from an ancient palm tree from once-temperate Antarctica to coal from the wreck of the Titanic. Amazing collection: Mr Fex is selling tiny samples of his specimens, presented in a transparent case
The collection includes a human brain sourced from a laboratory in Russia which supplies plastinated humans for exhibits worldwide. Reality bites: Mr Fex's T-Rex tooth, which was collected on private ranch land and thought to have been shed while the animal was feeding
He has also amassed other unique items including a piece of the Apollo 11 command module, a piece of the original London Bridge, an Egyptian Mummy wrap, a dinosaur egg and lunar rock.
The Mini Museum is a portable collection of curiosities where every item is authentic, iconic and labeled.
Mr Fex's obtained foil from the Apollo 11 command module directly from astronaut Buzz Aldrin during a 2007 auction
Artefact: Coal fuel recovered from the Titanic, the cruise liner deemed unsinkable that sunk in 1912 after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic
House about that: Foundation bricks from Abraham Lincoln's house
Mr Fex, from Stirling, Virginia, explains: ‘It’s been carefully designed to take you on a journey of learning and exploration. The idea is simple. For the past 35 years I have collected amazing specimens specifically for this project. I then carefully break those specimens down into smaller pieces, embed them in resin, and you end up with an epic museum in a manageable space. If you consider the age of some of these specimens - it’s been billions of years in the making.’
The majority of these specimens were acquired directly from contacting specialists recommended to Mr Fex by museum curators, research scientists and university historians.
Hans has now smashed his fundraising target on Kickstarter and hopes to start shipping the Mini Museum later this year. They will come in three sizes - small, with 11 specimens, medium with 22 and large with 33. They will cost £60, £105 and £120 respectively.
Hans is a professional product designer and says he got the idea for the Mini Museum when he was seven and was inspired by his father, a research scientist and a Director at the National Institutes of Health.
Wool you believe it: A tuft of hair from a mammoth could be yours
Enlarge The samples that make up the Mini Museum, with the large version containing all the specimens
He explains: ‘In 1977, the historic year of Star Wars and the Atari 2600, my father had returned from Malta with some artifacts that he had embedded into epoxy resin. I had never seen this done before and It was beautiful.
‘Then, all at once, I saw it - my first product idea: The Mini Museum, a grand collection within a manageable space. I was seven years old.
‘Several times throughout the next year I would discuss the project with my father and with his friends. These were researchers who had won Nobel Prizes and been knighted for their scientific accomplishments. They helped me refine the list to about 20 things we all agreed we’d like to have on our desks or in our pockets and they recommended ways of acquiring each of them - we even got on the phone and started calling museum curators for recommended sources.’
Hans had asked for $38,000 on crowdsourced-funding website Kickstarter, but has already seen 2,401 backers pledge $584,169 prior to the end date of 20 March.
Mr Fex was recently part of Geeklabs, the custom product design and manufacturing division of online retailer ThinkGeek.
Further explaining the Mini Museum, he says: ‘I’ve been imagining and building products most of my life.
‘I’ve spent the last year cataloging my collection, doing research, and experimenting with dozens of production and manufacturing techniques to make the Mini Museum a reality and I’m finally ready to share it with you. I’ve never been more passionate about a project in my entire life.
‘The collection starts with some of the oldest matter ever collected in the known Universe - matter collected from carbonacious chondrites. These meteorites contain matter that is over 4 billion years old. Other meteors include some that have skimmed off the surface of Mars or the moon and then landed on Earth - each of those containing matter from those celestial bodies.
‘What’s next? Specimens from the strelly pool stromatolites that contain the earliest evidence of life on Earth. Also, a piece of a palm tree from Antarctica - yes Antarctica. Everybody loves dinosaurs and the Mini Museum contains plenty of unique specimens from hundreds of millions of years ago including favorites like the T-Rex and Triceratops. Even dinosaur poop.
Golden oldie: The most ancient matter ever found, from various meteorites, dating back over four billion years, forms part of the collection
‘As we migrate from the beginning of the Universe to early life on Earth, we discover Homo Sapiens. Naturally, the Mini Museum also has many amazing and rare specimens documenting human history and culture. Mummy wrap, rocks from Mt. Everest, Trinitite, coal from Titanic,and even a piece of the Apollo 11 command module to name just a few.
‘It’s space and time in the palm of your hand. There is nothing else quite like it. There are many more specimens for you to discover so make sure to check out the full lists below.
‘The Universe is amazing. I really wanted to remind people of that with this collection. How awesome would it be to own a group of rare meteorites, dinosaur fossils and relics of some of the most talked about places and events in human history? All in the palm of your hand?
‘The Mini Museum is a portable learning tool, a smart and rare ice breaker, and a wonderful piece of historical art. Great for folks aged 7 to 122 and completely safe and non toxic.’
Watch the advert here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2054592112/mini-museum