Archaeologist Peter Hammond will be bringing along his vast collection of rubbish! Courtesy Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery

During Museums and Galleries Month 2007 24 Hour Museum is picking out some interesting museum, gallery and heritage events from its listings ... here's news about two events that reveal the secrets of rubbish - past and present.

A workshop to explore the significance of rubbish in discovering aspects of people’s identity has been organised at Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery, as part of Museums and Galleries Month 2007.

Taking place on May 27, the Load of Rubbish workshop will be led by archaeologist Peter Hammond, who will demonstrate what we can learn about the Victorians from their rubbish using his own vast collection of artefacts.

Peter’s collection includes clay tobacco pipes made into popular figures of the time such as Queen Victoria as well as dolls’ tea sets, buttons and combs made of bone.

“Rubbish is a real link with the past and can bring it alive for so many people and there’s huge potential for cross generational input,” said Peter. "Children can enjoy the Victorian game of fivestones, while grandparents can reflect on the aspects of the period that their generation also experienced like the outside toilet."

Many people don't realise how much historic items are literally lying under their feet. Courtesy Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery

Rubbish is an important resource for archaeologists in discovering facts about how people lived before us including their diet and lifestyle and, according to Peter, many of us stumble across Victorian artefacts but simply do not recognise what they actually are.

“As well as the artefacts themselves, it’s the story of how they got to be in the ground that is intriguing,” added Peter, who will be telling the often smelly stories about his artefacts and their recovery on the day.

The exploration of rubbish will be kicked off for Museums and Galleries Month by a similar event at The Collection, Lincoln. Absolute Rubbish runs on May 11 and will take a look at what we can discover about the past through peoples rubbish and what people in the future will be able to discover about us from the junk we throw away today.

The event also includes creative crafts workshops using rubbish and discarded objects.

Both events are free but entry cost to Nottingham Castle applies.

This is just one of the hundreds of listings featured on 24 Hour Museum for Museums and Galleries Month 2007. To discover more just enter MGM into the search box on this page or see the what's on page to search by date or place.

Chloé Titcomb is a Renaissance-funded student journalist covering MGM events in the East Midlands. Renaissance is the groundbreaking initiative to transform England's regional museums, led by MLA, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council.