Are any of the art treasures in the north-east more beloved than the Silver Swan at the Bowes Museum? (Answer: unlikely.)

The American novelist Mark Twain saw the Silver Swan at the Paris exhibition in 1867 and described it in his book ‘The Innocents Abroad’: “I watched the Silver Swan, which has a living grace about his movement and a living intelligence in his eyes – watched him swimming about as comfortably and unconcernedly as if he had been born in a morass instead of a jeweller’s shop…” The Swan is now celebrating its 250th anniversary with an exhibition that has inventiveness and playfulness at its core. It will feature objects, artefacts and artworks from the Bowes collection as well as moving objects and images and kinetic artworks from further afield put together by artists, makers, designers and inventors.

The Magic of the Silver Swan, until 7 January 2024, The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, thebowesmuseum.org.uk