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Archaeology professor Sian Jones with artefacts found in Whitworth Park
Pieces of history unearthed in a city-centre park are due to go on display for the first time.
Toys, bottles, brooches and combs dating back to the 19th century are among artefacts found during an archaeology dig at Whitworth Park in Manchester.
The haul also includes glass marbles and toy aeroplanes - plus pop bottles from picnics from down the decades.
They were found during the start of a two-year project exploring the Oxford Road park’s 120-year history.
The items, currently being cleaned and catalogued by Manchester University archeologists, will form part of an exhibition and permanent archive.
Further excavations are planned for next year.
All the items were dug up on the western side of the park – which once boasted a boating lake, duck island and glass pavilion. Sian Jones, professor of archaeology at Manchester University, said: "We had done geophysical surveys on the park before, but being able to show things to people through excavation really gives them a sense of history.
"The objects we found give a really good picture of the toys children played with in the park and even what drinks people took there for picnics over the ages.
"It is really helpful for our research into the history of parks and the place they had in peoples’ lives."
University staff and volunteers from the Friends of Whitworth Park group are now appealing for people who have memories of the park to come forward to help with their research.
That information will be used for new display boards in the park, as well as a book.
Friends group member Ken Shone said: "We have lots of early newspaper articles about the making of the park and photographs taken around the time of the First World War, but we have very little about the last 80-odd years. We are searching through archives to try and fill this gap.
"Most importantly, we also want to hear stories from people who heard a band there, saw kids paddling in the lake or even just had a lovely picnic."
Archaeology professor Sian Jones with artefacts found in Whitworth Park
