< RETURN HOME

The Great Sawfish Move

Museum visitors December 19 witnessed a major step toward opening the Museum's new bird exhibit: Taking Flight --THE WORLD OF BIRDS. Employees from the Facilities Services Group and University Relations joined students from the Department of Geoscience, and volunteers and staff from the Museum to lower a sixteen foot-long sawfish from the ceiling of the Hageboeck Hall of Birds and carry it downstairs to the lab.

After some minor refurbishment this historic specimen will be rehung in the north ground floor atrium of Macbride Hall.

1. Setting up the winch.	2. Stuck half way down--much heavier than estimated.	3. Thinking already this was a bad idea.
4. Starting down from the third floor.	5. How do you turn the corner with a 16 ft. fish. . .?	6. stick its nose out the window and lower it over the railing.
7. Continuing down when we realized . . .	8. those walls weren't here when the fish was carried upstairs 80 years ago.	9. Last flight of stairs.
10. Ground floor and home stretch.	11. Watch the tail!	12. Home in the lab.

History of the sawfish