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Journal article
Rethinking the Dark Age: the multiple voices of early medieval Britain
What do you picture when you think of the Dark Age. The common perception the phrase conjures is simple living and hardship. However, the sheer number of inscribed objects from this period paint another picture. Through new research methods, we are uncovering the multiple voices of early medieval Britain and...Maldonado, Adrián
literacy, Archaeology, Vikings, Symbols, Research Project, St Ninian's Isle Treasure, Glenmorangie, and Picts
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Giants and dwarfs at the Ordnance Office in the Tower of London
Higgitt, Rebekah
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Abstract
Fractured mountains: quartz crystals and the Cairngorms
Dr Sarah Laurenson is Principal Curator of Modern and Contemporary History and Head of the Modern and Contemporary History Section. She is responsible for the Scottish collections representing cultural, social, political, military and domestic history from c.1750 to the present.Laurenson, Sarah
collections, Scottish material culture, mountains, fragmented objects , research, natural environment, and mineralogy
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Book
The material landscapes of Scotland’s jewellery craft, 1780-1914
During the long 19th century, Scotland was home to an established body of skilled jewellers who were able to access a range of materials from the country's varied natural landscape: precious gold and silver; sparkling crystals and colourful stones; freshwater pearls, shells and parts of rare animals. Following these materials...Laurenson, Sarah
contemporary collecting, crafts, precious metals, Scotland, jewellery, natural environment, and material culture
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Blog post
The Black Watch at National Museum of Scotland
Rosie Waine is the William Grant Foundation Research Fellow at the National Museum of Scotland. Here she writes how the Black Watch Museum & Castle collection contributed to the exhibition she has curated called Wild and Majestic: Romantic Visions of Scotland. -
Research report
Scottish Wildcat Action: Final Summary Report
The wildcat, Felis silvestris, is one of our most iconic species. Elusive and rarely seen, it is threatened by a combination of extremely challenging factors, in particular hybridisation with domestic cats. Its secretive nature has made it a difficult animal to study in the wild, making it harder to design...Kitchener, Andrew C
Felis silvestris, ecology , population, and wildcat
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Journal article
Collecting the nation in the museum of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 1832–91
The sixty-year period from 1832 to 1891 was key to the development of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and its museum, during which time its collection was transferred to national ownership and greater emphasis began to be placed on social and cultural history. This article analyses acquisition data to... -
Other
The Daniel Wilson Scrapbook Listing
Sir Daniel Wilson (1816-1892) was an archaeologist, author, antiquarian and Secretary of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland from 1845 - 1853). Wilson donated his scrapbook (which he referred to as his "Memorials of Auld Reekie") to the Society. It contains illustrations of Edinburgh and other material, some of which...National Museums Scotland
Archives, Leith, Edinburgh, Library, Memorials of Edinburgh in the olden time , Sir Daniel Wilson FSA (Scot) (January 5, 1816 – August 6, 1892), engravings, and Index
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Lecture
Metal Detecting and Treasure Trove in Scotland
Did you know that in Scotland, archaeological artefacts found by members of the public are considered 'Treasure Trove' and can be claimed to enable them to end up in museums. But what is Treasure Trove, and how do you make sure you're following the rules and metal detecting responsibly, in...Flynn, Sophie
Scotland, metal detecting, portable antiquities, recording and processing finds, and Treasure Trove Unit
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Doctoral thesis
“A Co-operation of Observers”: Crafting knowledge infrastructures for microscopy
In 1887, the President of the British Postal Microscopical Society, J. W. Measures, declared that "the beginner is unable to learn from the books on the microscope all the minutiae of so fine an art as mounting (microscope specimens). "1 The preparation of microscope slides, the observation of specimens, as...Beiermann, Lea
scientific instruments, craft knowledge, citizen science, and microscopes
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Journal article
Seasonal Adaptation: Geographic Photoperiod–Temperature Patterns Explain Genetic Variation in the Common Vole Tsh Receptor
The vertebrate photoperiodic neuroendocrine system uses the photoperiod as a proxy to time the annual rhythms in reproduction. The thyrotropin receptor (TSHR) is a key protein in the mammalian seasonal reproduction pathway. Its abundance and function can tune sensitivity to the photoperiod. To investigate seasonal adaptation in mammals, the hinge... -
Journal article
Two Enlightenment collections of scientific instruments in Hanoverian Britain
This lecture looks at the long-dispersed eighteenth-century collections of scientific instruments formed by two wealthy Scots noblemen, who turn out to be related to one another. They were Archibald Campbell, Earl of Ilay, later third Duke of Argyll, and his nephew, John Stuart, third Earl of Bute.Morrison-Low, Alison
scientific instrument collection, George Adams the Elder, John Stuart, Richard Glynne, and Archibald Campbell
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Abstract
Presenting a complex hoard deposit – the Galloway Hoard
The Galloway Hoard is the focus of an ongoing research project at National Museums Scotland examining a complex Viking-age deposit composed of multiple parcels, with organic preservation and a variety of materials (gold, silver, copper-alloy, glass, rock crystal, minerals, leather, wood, wool, silk, linen, and animal gut). There may be...Goldberg, Martin
Viking-age hoards, Galloway Hoard , rock crystal, minerals, wool, research project, wood, animal gut, silk, linen, gold, copper-alloy, leather, silver, and glass
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Journal article
Gerhard Bersu in Scotland, and his excavations at Traprain Law in context
Bersu’s excavations on the hillfort of Traprain Law in south-east Scotland are reviewed in the light of his British and Irish digs and other work on the hill itself. It differs from the rest of his British excavations, which mostly focussed on houses, but is entirely in keeping with his...Hunter, Fraser ; Armit, Ian ; Dunwell, Andrew
Scotstarvit, League of Prehistorians, hillfort , O. G. S. Crawford , Traprain Law, Vere Gordon Childe, and roundhouses
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Lecture
Instruments, Institutions and Individuals: The Local Networks of the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, in the 19th Century
Dr Rebekah Higgitt has been Principal Curator of Science at National Museums Scotland since August 2020. She was previously Senior Lecturer in History of Science at the University of Kent and Curator of History of Science at Royal Museums Greenwich, having done her PhD at Imperial College London and postdoctoral...Higgitt, Rebekah
19th century, scientific instruments, Edinburgh, Astronomy, and Royal Observatory
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Journal article
First recorded stranding of a short-finned pilot whale, Globicephala macrorhynchus, in Britain
A male pilot whale, Globicephala sp., was reported as a live stranding on 1st March 2012 at Hazelbeach, near Neyland, Pembrokeshire. It was euthanased and its skull was recovered during an onsite necropsy. Examination of the skull and contemporary photographs of the stranded animal confirm that this is the first...Kitchener, Andrew C ; Hantke, Georg ; Penrose, R S ; Perkins, M W ; Deaville, R
Globicephala melas, Delphinidae, skull, and Globicephala macrorhynchus
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Magazine article
The Seafield Collection: A unique collection of arms and armour in Scotland
Within the imposing setting of Fort George in the Scottish Highlands, an impressive collection of weaponry and equipment is displayed in the eighteenth century Grand Magazine (figure 1). All the objects on display relate to the short-lived service of units raised in the 1790s by the landowner, politician, and hereditary...Robertson, Calum
Clan Grant, Castle Grant, arms and armour, Scotland, digitisation, and Seafield Collection
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Abstract
Artefacts and Advocacy
Technical artefacts have many meanings over the course of their use-life and museum after life. By engaging with audiences thoughtfully and openly, science museums can use their objects' dynamic biographies to address global challenges we face today. Not least of these is human-induced rapid climate change. Take the trusty tractor...Alberti, S J M M
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Presentation
Preparing to Borrow
Brownlee, Yvonne
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Abstract
STICKing Together
This talk considers the role of the Subject Specialist Network (SSN) in the industrial heritage sector through an examination of STICK, the Scottish Transport and Industrial Collections Knowledge Network. STICK was formed in 2006 and has become one of Scotland’s most successful SSNs. Its newsletter, social media and events bring...Swinbank, Ellie
Agents and processes for safeguarding and conservation and Training of professionals in conservation of industrial and technological heritage
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Journal article
Phenotypic plasticity determines differences between the skulls of tigers from mainland Asia
Tiger subspecific taxonomy is controversial because of morphological and genetic variation found between now fragmented populations, yet the extent to which phenotypic plasticity or genetic variation affects phenotypes of putative tiger subspecies has not been explicitly addressed. In order to assess the role of phenotypic plasticity in determining skull variation,... -
Journal article
Joseph Anderson (1832–1916) and the Scottish historical collection in the Antiquities Museum, 1869 to 1892
Joseph Anderson (1832–1916) was an influential figure within the history of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and Scottish archaeology during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. But while Anderson is best known for his contribution to the development of Scottish prehistoric and early medieval archaeology, there has been...Holder, Julie
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Presentation
Guest Curator at Craft Scotland Conference 2022 - The Power of Glass Symposium at the National Museum of Scotland
Sarah Rothwell is the Senior Curator of Modern & Contemporary Design, in the Department of Global Arts, Cultures and Design at National Museums Scotland (NMS). Where she is responsible for the British, European and other 'Western' glass, ceramics, metalwork, jewellery and industrial design circa 1945-present collections. Her research focuses on...Rothwell, Sarah
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Book chapter
'I have had a great day': A O Curle and the discovery of the Traprain Treasure
The recovery of the Traprain Treasure was by far the greatest moment in Alexander Ormiston Curle's antiquarian career [Illus 1.1]. It is safe to assume that at the outset of the work in East Lothian on behalf of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, he had no expectation of such...Clarke, David
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Book review
Gordon J. Barclay & Ron Morris. 2019. The fortification of the Firth of Forth 1880–1977: ‘The most powerful naval fortress in the British Empire’. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Naval defences, unlike those typically constructed by land forces, are often impermanent or invisible: floating blockades deployed across the surface of the water or mines laid deep beneath it. This reality can pose real challenges for the interpretation of such historic sites, despite their significance or wider appeal. Remnants of...Robertson, Calum
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Journal article
Edmund Jarzembowski at 70: An appreciation
Edmund Aleksander Jarzembowski (BSc PhD FGS FRES) is currently a Leverhulme Emeritus Fellow; Scientific Associate (researcher) at The Natural History Museum London (NHMUK); and Professor at the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), Nanjing, specializing in the study of fossil insects (palaeoentomology).Austen, Peter A ; Wang, Bo ; Ross, Andrew J ; Coram, Robert A
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Journal article
Middle Jurassic fossils document an early stage in salamander evolution
Salamanders are an important group of living amphibians and model organisms for understanding locomotion, development, regeneration, feeding, and toxicity in tetrapods. However, their origin and early radiation remain poorly understood, with early fossil stem-salamanders so far represented by larval or incompletely known taxa. This poor record also limits understanding of...Jones, Marc E H ; Benson, Roger B J ; Skutschas, Pavel ; Hill, Lucy ; Panciroli, Elsa …
AMPHIBIANS , PHYLOGENY , JURASSIC , SALAMANDER, and EVOLUTION
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Journal article
Anatomy: A matter of death and life
Dr Tacye Phillipson explores what was behind the demand for a supply of dead bodies in 19th-century Edinburgh - and how and why this grisly practice cam to an end.Phillipson, Tacye
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Blog post
GeoCASe 2.0 and the evolution of data from physical specimen to the digital
As Principal Curator of the National Museums Scotland’s (NMS) 200 year old ‘Earth System collection, a collection of 70000 minerals, rocks and meteorites, one of my responsibilities is to ensure the collection puts its best foot forward into the Digital Era. So for the past few years, I have lead...Walcott, Rachel
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Le voir, le faire et la matière : l’art celtique comme processus
Ginoux, Nathalie ; Gosden, Chris ; Hoppe, Thomas ; Hunter, Fraser ; Krausse, Dirk …
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Conference paper (unpublished)
The Galloway Hoard: entangled identities in the material culture of a unique Viking-age assemblage
Goldberg, D Martin
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Did the Picts disappear? Beyond colonial approaches to the Viking Age in Scotland
Maldonado, Adrián
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Lecture
Museums and Medical Knowledge: past, present, and future
Although populated by the dead, medical museums are for the living. From their roots in the Enlightenment, medical practitioners have gathered pathological and anatomical material for clinical and educational benefit. This practice reached its zenith around 1900, when Maude Abbott led a generation of medical curators who gathered, arranged and...Alberti, S J M M
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Poster (unpublished)
CryoArks – The UK’s first zoological biobank
National Museums Scotland and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland are partners in a UK-wide collaboration to create the UK’s first comprehensive zoological Biobank network for research and conservation.Kitchener, Andrew C ; Murray-Dickson , Gill
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Poster (unpublished)
The wet collections of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition, 1902-1904
Ware, Fiona
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Lecture
An introduction to the marine invertebrate wet collections at National Museums Scotland
Natural History Wet collectionsWare, Fiona
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Lecture
Waking the Dead: promoting and recording Carrion beetles
A talk from the 2022 NFBR Conference at Oxford University Museum of Natural HistoryWhiffin, Ashleigh
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Journal article
Scottish Birds Records Committee report on rare birds in Scotland, 2020
This is the 13th annual report of the Scottish Birds Records Committee (SBRC) describing rare birds recorded in Scotland during 2020. Details of previous annual reports that cover the period 2005 to 2019 can be found listed in McInerny & McGowan (2021), some of which are cited in this reportMcInerny, C ; McGowan, R Y
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Book
Nature's Palette: A colour reference system from the natural world
The first-ever visual expansion of Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours, featuring over 800 illustration references from the natural worldBaty, Patrick ; Davidson, Peter ; Charwat, Elaine ; Simonini, Giulia ; Karliczek, André
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Journal article
Reintroducing the Vikings into Scotland's story
Dr Adrián Maldonado takes anothe rlook at the formation of Scotland, to ask whether we should recalibrate our images of the 'Vikings' to include more than just people of Norse descent.Maldonado, Adrián
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Blog post
On the edge: COP 15 and disappearing species
With COP 15 taking place in China this month, Principal Curator of Vertebrates Andrew Kitchener explores the case of the ivory-billed woodpecker. Thought to be extinct, but with potential sightings still reported, this bird is just one of many species we’re at risk of losing forever.Kitchener, Andrew C
Conservation , Birds , Natural Sciences , Audubon , and Natural World
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Blog post
A great slaughter: The extinction of the Carolina parakeet
The Carolina parakeet is the poster bird for our Audubon’s Birds of America exhibition. Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Biology, Zena Timmons, explores the decline of this bird species, information revealed by our specimens and how an extinct species can be recreated through taxidermy.Timmons, Zena
Taxidermy, Natural Sciences, Exhibitions, Birds, Conservation, and Audubon
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Journal article
Genetic integrity of European wildcats: Variation across biomes mandates geographically tailored conservation strategies
Hybridisation between domestic and wild taxa can pose severe threats to wildlife conservation, and human-induced hybridisation, often linked to species' introductions and habitat degradation, may promote reproductive opportunities between species for which natural interbreeding would be highly unlikely. Using a biome-specific approach, we examine the effects of a suite of...Protected area management, Biomes, Felis silvestris, Conservation, and Hybridisation
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Journal article
Darwin wasps: a new name heralds renewed efforts to unravel the evolutionary history of Ichneumonidae
The parasitoid wasp family Ichneumonidae is arguably one of the groups for which current knowledge lags most strongly behind their enormous diversity. In a five-day meeting in Basel (Switzerland) in June 2019, 22 researchers from 14 countries met to discuss the most important issues in ichneumonid research, including increasing the...Klopfstein, Seraina ; Santos, Bernardo F ; Shaw, Mark R ; Alvarado, Mabel ; Bennett, Andrew M R …
parasitoid wasps, paleoentomology, phylogenetics, Alpha taxonomy, and fossils
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Journal article
Scientists, collectors and illustrators: the roles of women in the Palaeontographical Society
Women have taken on a range of roles in scientific societies since the early twentieth century. The oldest society dedicated to palaeontology, the Palaeontographical Society, was established in 1847 principally for the publication of monographs on British fossils. Since its foundation, women have been involved, initially as collectors and illustrators,... -
Book chapter
Brooches from the Antonine Wall
The discovery of a number of brooches in the course of the excavations in the Falkirk district has prompted a review of the brooches known from the Antonine WallHunter, Fraser
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Journal article
Science and the City: Spaces and geographies of Metropolitan Science
The Metropolitan Science research project, based at the University of Kent from 2017–2020 and designed to run alongside the Science City gallery project, explores the significant place of craft, trade and commercial institutions in the development of London’s technical and experimental knowledge cultures. Drawing on this research, this paper presents...Higgitt, Rebekah ; Kilburn-Toppin, Jasmine ; Moxham, Noah
trade, London, commerce, institutions, practice, craft, early modern, knowledge, and spaces
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Journal article
Hugh’s printing protégé becomes his publisher. The story of Alexander Strachan or Strahan, publisher of The Life and Letters of Hugh Miller
I am researching Hugh Miller’s unusual publishing arrangements, including the frequency with which his firm, Miller & Fairly, printed his books for their Edinburgh publishers before and after his death. The obvious exception is Peter Bayne’s family-approved The Life and Letters of Hugh Miller (1871), printed in London for Strahan...Taylor, Michael A
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Exhibition-related event
Spotlight On: Audubon’s Birds of America
Discover how Birds of America, one of the world’s rarest and most coveted books, was made, and learn about the ongoing conservation work to preserve these life-size, hand-coloured prints for future generations. Exhibition Curator Mark Glancy will discuss the journey of bringing the stories behind the Birds of America publication...Glancy, Mark ; Cumming, Lisa
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Brough of Birsay revisited: a new look at the Pictish workshop
Maldonado, Adrián
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Lecture
Tools of Knowledge: Exploring the Scientific Instrument Trade with Digital Tools
The second edition of the Neuchâtel Seminar in History of Science and Technology – entitled Scientific Objects: Then and Now – aims to reflect on scientific objects and the problems raised by their study by working on two aspects in particular. On the one hand, the seminar will host retrospective...Higgitt, Rebekah
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Journal article
‘Where is the Ship Which From the Ceiling Hung?’ Ghost Ships: The ship models missing from Scotland’s churches
A recent survey of the surviving ship models in Scottish churches has identified an interesting chronological gap, an absence which has created the impression that ship models in Scotland’s churches are a nineteenth-century phenomenon. Existing older models from the seventeenth century have been dismissed as anomalies harking back to pre-Reformation...Greiling, Meredith
Shipmaster , Seafarer societies, ship models, Scottish churches, votive ships, and model-makers
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Journal article
The Scientific Name of the Aardwolf is Proteles cristatus
The aardwolf is one of the four members of the family Hyaenidae (order Carnivora). It is referred to as either Proteles cristatus or Proteles cristata in the scientific literature and on animal diversity websites, but only one of these names is correct. In this short note, we seek to rectify...Werdelin, Lars ; Kitchener, Andrew C ; Abramov, Alexei ; Veron, Géraldine ; Do Linh San, Emmanuel
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Conference paper (unpublished)
IGCP 735 (2021-2025): rocks and the rise of Ordovician life: filling knowledge gaps in the Early Palaeozoic biodiversification (Rocks n'ROL)
Deciphering the complex interactions between climate change, biodiversity and ecosystem structuration is a major societal issue for future generations. The geological record offers the unique opportunity to document the impact of environmental changes in the biosphere in the past, and thus to provide some clues for the future. In this...Lefebvre, Bertrand ; Candela, Yves ; Hariri , Khadija ; Ghobadi Pour , Mansoureh ; Raevskaya, Elena …
stratigraphy , biodiversity, IGCP project , palaeobiogeography, Ordovician , and databases
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Blog post
The Traprain Treasure silver replicas
Every so often an archaeological discovery comes along that grips the imagination of the public. This fascination with the past has driven a production line of replicas, making ‘ancient’ artefacts available for those that wish to own a piece of history. The replicas of the remarkable Roman silver hoard from...McGill, Lyndsay
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Journal article
Review of: Alejandro Jiménez-Serrano and Juan Carlos Sánchez-León: Le Premier Nome du sud de l’Égypte au Moyen Empire, Fouilles de la mission espagnole à Qoubbet el-Haoua (Assouan) 2008–2018
At the First Cataract of the Nile in southern Egypt, the sandstone hill of Qubbet el-Hawa is the site of a large necropolis, most notably home to the tombs of local ruling officials (c. 2345–1795 BCE), as well as other burials dating up to the Roman period, a Coptic church...Maitland, Margaret
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Journal article
Two species of Lonchaeidae (Diptera) new to the British Isles and further records of the family in Scotland
Two species of Lonchaeidae, Dasiops facialis Collin, 1953 and Lonchaea angelina MacGowan, 2014, are added to the British fauna based on specimens captured in a Malaise trap in Lochaber, Highland. The taxonomic history and geographical range of these species are discussed and comparisons are made between them and other British...MacGowan, Iain ; Strachan, Ian M
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Lecture
Alexander, 10th Duke of Hamilton and Hamilton Palace: the awe inspiring demonstration of exalted status of the premier peer of Scotland and some final additions from the Beckford bequest
This year’s Beckford Lecture ‘Alexander, 10th Duke of Hamilton and Hamilton Palace: the awe inspiring demonstration of exalted status of the premier peer of Scotland and some final additions from the Beckford bequest’ will be given by Dr Godfrey Evans. Dr Evans is Principal Curator of Decorative Arts, National Museums...Evans, Godfrey
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Lecture
Edinburgh to Hawai’i – the short astronomical career of John Walter Nichol
Talk by Dr Rebekah Higgitt, Historian of science, Principal Curator of Science, National Museums Scotland “The name John Walter Nichol enters the history of astronomy for his participation as an observer in one of the British expeditions to observe the transit of Venus in 1874. He was said to have...Higgitt, Rebekah
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Lecture
Archie Brennan, Tapestry Goes Pop!
Join Lisa Mason, National Museums Scotland’s Assistant Curator in Modern and Contemporary Fashion and Textiles, and Kate Grenyer, Exhibitions Curator at Dovecot Studios, for a behind the scenes look at Dovecot’s upcoming exhibition co-curated by National Museums Scotland, Archie Brennan: Tapestry Goes Pop! Enjoy an exclusive preview into the world...Mason, Lisa ; Grenyer, Kate
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Lecture
“Metal detecting in Scotland: understanding the extent, it’s character & opportunities for engagement”
Dr Natasha Ferguson, Treasure Trove Unit, National Museums Scotland, and Kevin Munro, Historic Environment Scotland, present a short interactive lecture on “Metal detecting in Scotland: Understanding the extent, it’s character & opportunities for engagement” at the Archaeological Research in Progress (ARP 2017) national day conference on Saturday 27th May 2017...Ferguson, Natasha ; Munro, Kevin
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Book chapter
From obstetrics to oryctology: inside the mind of William Hunter (1718–1783)
Today William Hunter is remembered mainly for his pioneering work in obstetrics and for our understanding of the lymphatic system, but his interests were wide-ranging, encompassing artworks (the first to collect Chardin), archaeological, numismatic and bibliographical items. As a key figure in the Enlightenment, he was one of the few...Liston, Jeff
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Book chapter
Miller's most important geological discovery’: Archibald Geikie (1835–1924) as pupil and memorialist of Hugh Miller (1802–56)
Hugh Miller, stonemason turned writer, newspaper editor and geologist, became the young Archibald Geikie’s friend and geological mentor, encouraged his first research and presentation to a learned society, and recommended him to the Geological Survey, thus laying the foundations for a career that reached the top of British science. Geikie...Taylor, Michael A
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Book chapter
Autobiography and documentable fact in the family background and religious affiliation of Archibald Geikie (1835–1924)
In his autobiography of 1924, Archibald Geikie (1835–1924) suppressed basic information about his family and religious beliefs. Investigation reveals a more complete picture of those aspects of Geikie’s life. He was brought up in a strongly religious family, of Congregational affiliation, which he himself followed as a young man. His...Taylor, Michael A
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Journal article
A kingdom in decline: Holocene range contraction of the lion (Panthera leo) modelled with global environmental stratification
Aim We use ecological niche models and environmental stratification of palaeoclimate to reconstruct the changing range of the lion (Panthera leo) during the late Pleistocene and Holocene. Location The modern (early 21st century) range of the lion extends from southern Africa to the western Indian Subcontinent, yet through the... -
Journal article
Small carnivorans, museums and zoos
Small carnivorans are generally poorly represented in zoos, probably because they are small, mostly nocturnal and solitary hunters. However, there is limited knowledge about the ecology and behaviour of a large number of these and many species are threatened with extinction or their conservation status is poorly known or even...Kitchener, Andrew C
museums , zoo, small carnivoran , research , taxonomy , conservation , collection, anatomy , and biobanking
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Journal article
Norman Dott (1897–1973) and medical illustration: the importance of art to neurosurgery
Anatomical information and pathologies have been conveyed through the medium of medical illustrations for centuries. In the formative years of British neurosurgery, Professor Norman Dott (1897–1973) utilised medical illustrations as a means of documenting neurosurgical advances and conveying pathological-anatomical correlation. He commissioned a vast number of medical illustrations over the... -
Journal article
Carlisle Museum's Natural History Record Bureau, 1902–1912: Britain's first local environmental records centre
Carlisle Museum's Natural History Record Bureau, Britain's first local environmental records centre, collected and collated records, mainly of birds but including also mammals and fishes, from amateur naturalists. It initially covered an area of 80 kilometres around Carlisle, and later from Cumberland, Westmorland and the detached portion of Lancashire north... -
Journal article
Projecting the Museum: moving images in, and of, Scotland's national museum
The century-long engagement of museums with the moving image is examined through a case study of its deployment by National Museums Scotland (inclusive of its predecessor organisations the Royal Scottish Museum and the Royal Museum of Scotland). The study engages the academic genres of film studies and museum studies to...Swinney, Geoffrey N
Cinema, television, video, film, Royal Scottish Museum, National Museums Scotland, and historical geography
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Journal article
Twenty years of the tiger feeding pole: review and recommendations
The tiger feeding pole was developed at Glasgow Zoo, UK, more than 20 years ago as a feeding-enrichment device. Since then the adoption of the feeding pole by other zoos for Tigers Panthera tigris and other cats has been slow and sporadic until recent years when many zoos in the...Law, G ; Kitchener, Andrew C
behaviour, feeding, tiger, snow leopard, enrichment, jaguar, lion, welfare, captivity, and hunting
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Journal article
Shaping scientific instrument collections: A historiography
There is an extensive literature on the history of what we now term scientific instruments. As a result, we know a great deal about how devices such as telescopes, clocks and astrolabes were made and used, especially those dating from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries. Many of these artefacts...Alberti, S J M M
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Journal article
The Janitor and his museum: John Wilson (1775–1832) and the teaching of ‘practical zoology’ in early nineteenth-century Edinburgh
A description by William Jardine of Applegirth of the state of taxidermy in early nineteenth-century Edinburgh draws attention to the agency of the University of Edinburgh’s Janitor, John Wilson, in contributing to the University’s Natural History Museum, in the building of his own private museum collection, and in the teaching...Swinney, Geoffrey N ; McGowan, R Y
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Journal article
Maude Abbott and the origin and mysterious disappearance of the Canadian Medical War Museum
From the mid-1960s a new breed of scientific instrument curators emerged in the United Kingdom. This small community of practice developed in parallel to but Context.—In the early 1900s, it was common practice to retain, prepare, and display instructive pathologic specimens to teach pathology to medical trainees and practitioners; these...Wright Jr, James R ; Alberti, S J M M ; Lyons, Christopher ; Fraser, Richard S
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Journal article
Colouring the Nation: a new in-depth study of the Turkey Red Pattern Books in the National Museums Scotland
The production of Turkey red dyed and printed cottons was a major industry in the west of Scotland, particularly in the mid- to late nineteenth century. Although the extensive works were pulled down in the second half of the twentieth century, our knowledge of this industry is significantly aided by...Tuckett, Sally ; Nenadic, Stana
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Journal article
Early Cretaceous parasitism in amber: a new species of Burmazelmira fly (Diptera: Archizelmiridae) parasitized by a Leptus sp. mite (Acari, Erythraeidae)
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) commits its 196 nation parties to conserve biological diversity, use its components sustainably, and share fairly and equitably the benefits from the utilization of genetic resources. The last of these objectives was further codified in the Convention's Nagoya Protocol (NP), which came into effect...Prathapan, K Divakaran ; Pethiyagoda, Rohan ; Bawa, Kamaljit S ; Raven, Peter H ; Rajan, Priyadarsanan Dharma …
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Journal article
Alfred Nicholson Leeds and the first fossil egg attributed to a ‘saurian’
Discovered by the nineteenth century collector Alfred Nicholson Leeds, the first object to be described (1898) as a fossil reptile egg is a unique find from the Oxford Clay near Peterborough. It also comes from one of a very small number of Jurassic localities worldwide that can claim to have...Liston, Jeff
Oxford Clay, Callovian, Alfred Nicholson Leeds, and dinosaur egg
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Journal article
Scientific instrument curators in Britain: building a discipline with material culture
From the mid-1960s a new breed of scientific instrument curators emerged in the United Kingdom. This small community of practice developed in parallel to but distinctly from the expanding generation of university historians of science and other cognate museum sub-professions. Presenting the trajectories, experiences and practices of personnel in British...Alberti, S J M M
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Journal article
Rediscovery and reclassification of the dipteran taxon Nothomicrodon Wheeler, an exclusive endoparasitoid of gyne ant larvae
The myrmecophile larva of the dipteran taxon Nothomicrodon Wheeler is rediscovered, almost a century after its original description and unique report. The systematic position of this dipteran has remained enigmatic due to the absence of reared imagos to confirm indentity. We also failed to rear imagos, but we scrutinized entire...Pérez-Lachaud, Gabriela ; Jahyny, Benoit J B ; Ståhls, Gunilla ; Rotheray, Graham E ; Delabie, Jacques H C …
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Journal article
Geomagnetic instruments at National Museums Scotland
In 1981, the sole book about historic geomagnetic instruments was by Anita McConnell. Using it as a timeline, the Royal Scottish Museum’s temporary exhibition ‘The Earth is a Magnet’, was put on to co-incide with an international congress held in Edinburgh that year. The experience emphasised curatorial awareness that this...Morrison-Low, A D
Scottish geomagnetic history, curatorial practice, Temporary exhibitions, and Dr Anita McConnell.
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Journal article
A new terrestrial millipede fauna of earliest Carboniferous (Tournaisian) age from southeastern Scotland helps fill ‘Romer's Gap'
A diverse millipede (diplopod) fauna has been recovered from the earliest Carboniferous (Tournaisian) Ballagan Formation of the Scottish Borders, discovered by the late Stan Wood. The material is generally fragmentary; however, six different taxa are present based on seven specimens. Only one displays enough characters for formal description and is...Ross, Andrew ; Edgecombe, Gregory D ; Clark, Neil D L ; Bennett, Carys E ; Carrió, Vicen …
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Journal article
A legacy in fossils: a tribute to Stan(ley) Wood – Preface
Stan Wood had a gift for finding exceptional Early Carboniferous fossils. Among them are 32 type specimens. His discoveries significantly changed our understanding of the history of life on Earth. Many of the fossils he collected are on display in museums across the UK and the localities he discovered continue...Fraser, Nicholas C ; Smithson, Timothy R ; Clack, Jennifer A
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Journal article
Earwigs (Dermaptera) from the Mesozoic of England and Australia, described from isolated tegmina, including the first species to be named from the Triassic
Dermaptera (earwigs) are described from the Triassic of Australia and England, and from the Jurassic and Cretaceous of England. Phanerogramma heeri (Giebel) is transferred from Coleoptera and it and Brevicula gradus Whalley are re-described. Seven new taxa are named based on tegmina: Phanerogramma australis sp. nov. and P. dunstani sp....Ross, Andrew ; Kelly, Richard S ; Jarzembowski, Edmund A
palaeoentomology, Polyneoptera taxonomy/systematics, palaeobiogeography, and Archidermaptera
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Journal article
Fossil Insects, Arthropods and Amber: Preface
This volume comprises 28 papers resulting from the 7th International Conference on Fossil Insects, Anthropods and Amber which took place at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, from 26 April to 1 May 2016.Ross, Andrew
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Journal article
Investigating vision - scientific instruments as historiographic tools for the understanding of the development and establishment of colour, perception and performance research at Edinburgh University, 1850–1950
This article draws a historic trajectory for the study of colour perception at Edinburgh University through the examination of three key pieces of scientific apparatus and their uses. It traces the development of colour, perception and skills research at Edinburgh University from the 1850s to 1950s. Starting point of the...Staubermann, Klaus
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Journal article
Threatened but understudied: supporting conservation by understanding the genetic structure of the flat-headed cat
The flat-headed cat (Prionailurus planiceps) is a wetland specialist, currently facing habitat loss on a serious scale due to massive destruction of lowland forests and wetlands in Southeast Asia. Despite its ‘endangered’ status in the IUCN Red List, there has virtually been no investigation on the population structure nor on...Patel, R P ; Lenz, D ; Kitchener, Andrew C ; Fickel, J ; Förster, D W …
Flat-headed cat Habitat specialist Hybrid capture Mitogenome MtDNA
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Journal article
A fossil protein chimera; difficulties in discriminating dinosaur peptide sequences from modern cross-contamination
A decade ago, reports that organic-rich soft tissue survived from dinosaur fossils were apparently supported by proteomics-derived sequence information of exceptionally well-preserved bone. This initial claim to the sequencing of endogenous collagen peptides from an approximately 68 Myr Tyrannosaurus rex fossil was highly controversial, largely on the grounds of potential...Buckley, M ; Warwood, S ; van Dongen, B ; Kitchener, Andrew C ; Manning, Phillip L
palaeoproteomics, Tyrannosaurus, ancient collagen, dinosaur protein, Brachylophosaurus, and ostrich