Winners of Leicestershire's Favourite Museum Objects!

A silver boar badge dropped in the mud over 500 years ago by one of King Richard III’s own knights and the iconic British toy Action Man –designed and produced in Coalville, have been voted as joint winners of Leicestershire’s favourite museum objects!

The winning objects as voted by members of the public can be seen at Leicestershire County Council’s Bosworth Battlefield Visitor Centre and Snibston Discovery Museum. They were chosen by public vote from the top 100 items on the ‘Leicestershire Revealed’ website which showcases the county’s finest museum objects.

The top 10 most popular objects which include items representing Leicestershire’s social history, archaeology, industry and natural history, can be found in eight different museums across the county including community museums run entirely by volunteers.

Karen Hollis from Loughborough voted for the Bosworth Boar and said: “It conveys as strong a message now as it must have done when its owner wore it into battle.”

Daren Millar, from Winchester who voted for Action Man said: “Ahhh the nostalgia! Action Man is still popular - he has his own army of collectors!”

David Sprason, Leicestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Adults and Communities, said:
"Both of these items reflect Leicestershire’s true history and identity and show just how wide and vast the county’s history is. On the one hand we have a truly remarkable badge which tells us so much about the battle that was pivotal in shaping the future of England and on the other; we have one of last century’s most iconic toys that was enjoyed by people all over the world. These and the many other items that make up the fascinating 100 top items can be viewed in Leicestershire’s museums and I would encourage everyone to go along and take a look for themselves."

Members of the public who voted for the winning items will be entered into a prize draw and two lucky winners will be presented with an annual visitors pass to Leicestershire’s museums.

All 100 objects can also still be viewed on the Leicestershire Revealed website at www.leics.gov.uk/revealed

Picture of an Action Man Toy