A horse-drawn hearse which is one of the most prized of many possessions of the Faraday Centre Museum of Technology in Napier is to hit the road again, to be rehomed while the building is restrengthened and upgraded.
The 19th-century hearse, originally used in Waipawa, has sat awkwardly placed in an upstairs walkway overlooking the lower floor and other displays, which include the globally-revered Fullagar diesel generating plant which was built in England and installed in 1925 to power the looming city of Napier.
The 110-tonne Fullagar, standing two storeys above the ground, isn't going anywhere and it is expected the hearse will be the only item relocated during the work on the Faraday St site, between Thackeray and Carlyle streets.
The Coach House Museum in Feilding has accepted the offer to house the hearse and representatives have visited Napier to look at the logistics, which include lowering it to ground level, probably with either a forklift or a working hoist already in the building and manoeuvrable throughout.
Faraday Centre facility manager Sharyn Phillips says the current positioning of the hearse means its axles protrude from the wheels, people knock into it as they walk past on what is already a narrow landing and it doesn't fit the current configuration.