Menu
Hit enter to search or ESC to close
Collections Menu
  • Collections Home
  • Visit Us
  • What’s On
  • Museums
  • Collections
  • Learning & Engagement
  • Resources & Research
  • Search the Collections
  • Join & Support
  • Contact
  • ETON COLLEGE
  • PARENT PORTAL
  • EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
  • THE TONY LITTLE CENTRE (CIRL)
  • ETONX
  • COLLEGE COLLECTIONS
  • OEA ONLINE
  • FACILITIES FOR HIRE
What’s On
  • Exhibitions
  • Museum and Gallery Openings
  • Events
  • Heritage Tours
  • Online Exhibitions
  • Past Exhibitions
Back
Museums
  • Museum of Antiquities
  • Museum of Eton Life
  • Natural History Museum
Back
Collections
  • Archives
  • College Library
  • Fine and Decorative Art
  • Collections Care
Back
Learning & Engagement
  • Digital Learning Resources
  • Schools
  • Families
  • Colleges and Universities
  • Adult Groups
Back
Resources & Research
  • Search the Collections
  • Blog
  • Online Resources
  • Image Service
  • Loans
  • Research Facilities
Back
Join & Support
  • Friends of the Collections
  • Donate
Back
Contact
  • Contact Details
Back

Home Resources & Research Blog

Object of the Week – 14/03/13

14 Mar 2013

Natural History Museum

Object of the Week – 14/03/13

Home News & Diary School Blog

Object of the Week – 14/03/13

Natural History Museum

Our specimen this week always has their five a day. What is it?

 

 

Did you know what last week’s object of the week was?

Pufferfish

The photo last week was a close-up of the spines of our Pufferfish. Pufferfish are the second most toxic vertebrates in the world. They contain a neurotoxin, Tetrodotoxin (TTX), for which there is no known antidote. The name of the toxin is taken from the name of the order Tetraodontiformes which includes Pufferfish.

Why is there a Pufferfish in the display case next to Captain Cook? The first recorded case of TTX poisoning was in 1774 when the crew of Cook’s ship ate parts of a tropical fish and experienced numbness and difficulty breathing. The crew survived, but the pigs which had eaten the rest of the fish later died.

Pufferfish are eaten In Japan as a dish called Fugu. Chefs train for up to three years and must take an examination before they earn their license to make this dish.

Back to all blogs
Previous

Object of the Week – 07/03/13

07 Mar 2013

Next

Object of the Week – 21/03/13

21 Mar 2013

Contact Us

Collections Administrator
Eton College Collections
Eton College
Windsor
SL4 6DB

01753 370 590

[email protected]

Quick Links

  • Online Resources
  • Search the Collections
  • Archives
  • College Library
  • Fine and Decorative Art
  • Museum of Antiquities
  • Museum of Eton Life
  • Natural History Museum
  • Collections Care
  • Contact Details
Registered Charity Number 1139086
© Eton College 2025

Web design by TWK