A mouse that died after it was taped to a firework rocket during Dutch New Year festivities has gone on show in a museum.
The rodent, named Astromuis by the Dutch media, has been stuffed and mounted in a "triumphant position" surrounded by firework rockets in Friesland's Natuurmuseum.
Astromuis was rescued by police with burns to his stomach and paws but died last week.
Two 20-year-old men from the Frisian village of Drachten were arrested for maltreating the mouse.
The mouse is not the first victim of cruelty to animals to be preserved for posterity in the Natuurmuseum.
Also displayed is Dominomus, a stuffed sparrow which was shot in 2005 after it flew into an exhibition centre where 18 million dominoes were precariously balanced ready to be toppled for a world record attempt.
The bird had knocked over 23,000 dominoes before it was killed to become an animal cruelty cause célèbre in Holland and has two popular songs and a website dedicated to its memory.
Another sparrow on display, Tennisbalmus, was killed by a tennis ball during a high-speed power serve in 1996.
Christiaan Walen, the museum's taxidermist, said that the Astomuis exhibit would help prevent future cruelty to animals.
"The story behind the mouse can help schoolchildren and other people learn respect for nature and everything that grows and thrives," he said.





















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