Natural sciences curator Emma Burns created the display that opened yesterday, pairing parts of the museum’s crystal and rock collection, with a "glam rock" music soundtrack.
Ms Burns said the idea for a mineral exhibit at the museum had been gaining momentum for a while.
The display, which opened yesterday, featured examples of natural crystal balls, goodletite and acid rock, she said.
The rocks and minerals in the collection were donations from Ann and Russell Beck, Dr Anthony Reay and graduate students from the University of Otago department of geology.
However, museum staff had been challenged over lockdown to come up with creative concepts to interest visitors.
So, Ms Burns created a soundtrack for the exhibit with classic glam rock songs, chosen for their lyrics’ reflection of the appearance, concept or geological process told by stone.
"It was a lot of fun to curate," Ms Burns said. "It’s not often that natural science curators are encouraged to take a pop-culture spin on scientific and academic concepts and turn them into stories that everyone can relate to and enjoy.
"But funnily enough most lab groups and field trips are often full of puns and pop culture references — it humanises the work scientists do.
"I’m pretty biased, but reckon if you spend any time exploring the world of geology and music you’ll ... have your mind blown.
"If you leave the exhibit with a new earworm and associate that with something you’ve learnt about a glam rock, the plan is working."
