Janis,
 
I think the standard way of dealing with things like this is long
shelves. Get some rests under the spears, as long as the shelf is wide,
and spaced about every two feet apart. Semicircular cutouts in the top of
the rests make the spears lie parallel and the rests lift the shafts off the
surface of the shelf. Judging by your posting though, you're after
*creative* ideas ... so...
 
It's really amazing how much storage space is available on top of air
conditioning ducting - usually totally unexploited. :-)
 
We had a technician once who (we discovered) was making long fossil bones
fit into drawers by breaking one end off...(To be fair, she was quite
willing to glue it back on when required for study or display...)
 
And our geology curator assures me that any specimen takes up less room
when it's reduced to a four micron powder.
 
Probably not much help, I know.
 
Peter Volk
Social History
Queensland Museum.
[log in to unmask]
 
 
 
On Wed, 22 Feb 1995, Museum of York County wrote:
 
> Hi!  For my first posting--Does anyone out there have any creative ideas for
> storing awkward, lengthy objects, such as ten-foot spears?  The SPNHC book
> of storage solutions doesn't have an answer for this one . . . maybe you do?
>
> Janis Beth Wilkens
> Curator of Collections
> Museum of York County
> 4621 Mt. Gallant Road
> Rock Hill, SC  29732
> 803-329-2121  Fax: 803-329-5249
> Email: [log in to unmask]  ("Janis" in subject line)
>