Moving Boris the Bear

The Chelmsford Museum offers a huge variety of interesting exhibits from thousands of years in Chelmsford’s history, including:

• Fine art
• Military
• Biology
• Geology
• Archaeology artifacts.

Their biology collection includes a vast range of taxidermy that dates back many decades. Boris the Bear, a much loved, but fragile piece of natural history is on display within the Museum. Boris is a stuffed Brown Bear, a species that was extinct in Britain by the 10th Century AD. Here at Consolidated Services, we were enlisted with the task of moving the much loved Boris the Bear. His new home is to be within the Bright Sparks gallery, while his current home in the Victorian House is redeveloped. 

Boris the Bear has become a symbol of the museum and is often used when advertising for events and activities hosted at the Chelmsford Museum. We were thrilled when asked to carry out the move. There was a lot of pressure to not damage the case (and Boris inside) and the challenging move involved the Museum placing a lot of trust upon us to get the job done safely and smoothly.

As a leading provider of move management services, we have very high standards and a fantastic reputation to uphold. With over 30 years experience within the industry, this is just one of the reasons why we can be trusted with the delicate task of move management.

The Move

The team has to be trusted to know the necessary precautions when handling Boris the Bear and that we would treat the precious exhibit with the care it deserves. The journey from Boris’ original home to his new location wasn’t far, however, Boris lives in a large glass case that was extremely heavy. This meant the case could not be carried or pushed to the new location. The team placed thick straps under the heavy display cabinet to help lift it onto a pump truck. This was the only reasonable and effective way to wheel the glass case through narrow corridors. The straps were then again placed under the case where it was lowered to the new gallery and moved into position.

This may sound like a straightforward relocation, but the trust the Museum employees and Boris admirers bestowed upon us, made the process all that more important. Trust between the client and movers is highly important in all moves when the objects are of a high monetary value or of a high value to individuals and communities, such as Boris the Bear to the Chelmsford Museum and its visitors. The clients need the reassurance that our movers are going to carry out the task in the most effective way with minimal fuss and disturbance.