Packing up a collection of more than 22,000 objects, from model ships to bone-shaker bicycles, is no mean feat.

It took staff, volunteers and conservation experts at Snowshill Manor in Gloucestershire 3 months, 600 boxes, 55,000 sheets of tissue paper and 30 triplicate books.

The project

Snowshill is home to thousands of fascinating treasures collected entirely by architect and craftsman, Charles Paget Wade. The whole eclectic collection of over 22,000 objects ranging from the ridiculous to the sublime was safely packed away in storage during 2004 as essential maintenance work was carried out on the house.

Headed by a team of expert conservators, the project to move the unique collection began well over a year before a single item was moved.

A huge number of objects ranging from delicate hairpins to bone-shaking bicycles, a mummified hand to musical instruments, were to be packed up safely for the trip to the warehouse. A range of experts and volunteers were brought in, a specialist cataloguing system designed and a climate-controlled secure space large enough to house everything found.

Packing up

New methods of packing and storing the objects were thought up by the team of over 130 National Trust staff and volunteers. For instance, portable painting racks made up of a wooden toastrack-like structure were designed by a member of staff at Croft Castle to make moving the large canvases around easier and safer.

Another innovative packing technique was designed by volunteer Barry Silcock, an engineer by trade. Wooden boxes were built round the hulls of the delicate model ships, and the ships secured using cotton tape. Sheets of clear melinex were then used to protect the masts of the ships. This served the dual purpose of allowing the conservators to check on their condition in the warehouse.

Indeed, many of the bespoke containers had at least one side made up of clear melinex. This enabled people to immediately identify what was in the box, and keep an eye on the object's condition during and after transit.

The move

A special tunnel was built from the front entrance of the house to the car park to protect the collection from the elements. The 13 bicycles had to be fixed down to wooden panels. Bespoke origami boxes were made for the smaller, often bizarre, items in the collection such as tropical seeds and insects, jewellery and dolls house furniture. All then made the journey down the tunnel to waiting lorries before going to their temporary new home.

The infamous Japanese Samurai warrior outfits were sadly in a terrible condition and needed very careful packing and removal. The National Trust is currently running an appeal to raise the necessary funds to conserve the 36 suits, which date from the 17th to 19th centuries. If you would like to help, you can make a donation online.

Items were transported using special air-ride vehicles to minimise any sudden shocks or jolts. But just when it seemed to be all over, fate had a trick up her sleeve. In the final week, Snowshill was snowed in. Twelve volunteers and staff were stranded overnight and had to be put up in the local bed and breakfast and in a Snowshill holiday cottage. Fortunately the packing was completed the day before work on the house was due to start.

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The warehouse

The use of space within the tiny warehouse was planned in minute detail. Every nook and cranny was filled with cardboard boxes, wooden crates, mushroom trays donated from obliging restaurants and pieces of furniture.

Metals and ceramics were housed upstairs because of their greater ability to cope with rising heat. More delicate, organic items such as lacquer, ivory, paintings and wood were stored at ground level and their condition carefully monitored. Bikes and carriages were suspended on huge scaffold-like constructions and carpets rolled and lashed to warehouse railings so as not to take up valuable shelf space.

A meticulous documentation system was designed in the early stages of the project to let store handlers know where everything needed to go. Each box contained a duplicate inventory card, with one copy kept at the store and the other at the property. Everything, from grotesque items such as stuffed bats to commonplace lamps, was dated and colour-coded by its corresponding room at the Manor.

And back again …

Once the reservicing work had finished on the Manor, the entire collection was reloaded onto trucks, shipped back to Snowshill and re-instated.