Abstract

A 19th-century dried and stuffed type sunfish at the Natural History Museum in London (UK) was collapsing under its own weight and was in poor physical condition. The effort to stabilize and rehouse the specimen by removing the stuffing and restoring the skin is described here. The thickness and rigidity of the skin, as well as mechanical equipment failure during treatment, presented challenges during the restoration project. Although the aesthetics are still suboptimal, the integrity of this scientifically important specimen was maintained. Furthermore, the specimen has been stabilized on a combination internal and external frame system and is now far more maneuverable.