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Journal article
The development of the Pictish symbol system: inscribing identity beyond the edges of Empire
The date of unique symbolic carvings, from various contexts across north and east Scotland, has been debated for over a century. Excavations at key sites and direct dating of engraved bone artefacts have allowed for a more precise chronology, extending from the third/fourth centuries AD, broadly contemporaneous with other non-vernacular...Noble, Gordon ; Goldberg, D Martin ; Hamilton, Derek
language, Scotland, Pictish, writing, carving, and symbolism
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Journal article
Pictish symbols: inscribing identity beyond the fringe of empire
In the first of two features about early scripts in Britain, we visit north-east Scotland, where Pictish symbol stones tease the imagination with their appealing designs and mysterious origins. A new project has dated them, finding they were inspired by contact with the Roman world, like runes and ogham. Gordon...Noble, Gordon ; Goldberg, D Martin ; Hamilton, Derek
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Journal article
An unfinished mid-thirteenth-century 'Virgin and Child' from Saint-Germain-des-Prés
A sculpture of the Virgin and Child excavated in Paris in 1999 is probably a discarded first version of the trumeau figures from the portal of the lost Lady Chapel of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. It is evidence that this vanished group, here dated to 1245-47, represented a key development in Gothic sculpture.Dectot, Xavier
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Book chapter
Orientalist collecting of Indian sculpture
Roger Jeffery in this book has brought together 10 original, well-researched and well-written essays which bring to life the presence of India in the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh. On the surface Edinburgh is a purely Scottish city: its `India' past is not easily visible. Yet, from the late 17th...Voigt, Friederike
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Book chapter
Sycamore Vessel 5 by Liam Flynn
128 page full colour coffee table format publication celebrating the life and work of wood artist Liam Flynn.Rothwell, Sarah
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Book chapter
West Highland Sculpture, Scotland – defining a Gaelic Lordship
The graveyards of the West Highland of Scotland contain many commemorative crosses and grave-slabs dating from the 14th to mid 16th century. They are carved in distinctive style from a variety of rock types. Their distribution largely coincides with the Lordship of the Isles, a powerful Gaelic Princedom, often in...Caldwell, David H ; Eremin, Katherine ; Miller, S ; Ruckley, N A
Lordship of the Isles, West Highland Sculpture, petrology, rock types, and magnetic susceptibility
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Book chapter
Technical study' In: “Hatshepsut, from Queen to Pharaoh”
Cleopatra may be the most famous woman of ancient Egypt, but far more significant was Hatshepsut, a female pharaoh who reigned for nearly twenty years in the fifteenth century B.C., during the early period of the New Kingdom. After acting as regent for her young nephew-stepson Thutmose III, Hatshepsut assumed...Goring, Elizabeth ; Tate, Jim ; Eremin, Katherine ; Quye, Anita
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Book chapter
The exhibition. Material fluidities: dialogues between the digital and the handmade
The divide between the handcrafted and the digital is not as prescriptive as some would like to believe.Rothwell, Sarah
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Book chapter
The Museum of Scotland and conservation issues of commissioned art
The Museum of Scotland is a new building in Edinburgh which opened in November 1998 to present the history of Scotland from its geological beginnings to the present day. This article considers conservation issues within three themes: the building itself as iconic modern architecture and its effect on the exhibition...Tate, Jim ; Clarke, David V ; Spencer, Helen ; Cobo del Arco, B
Scotland), exhibiting, Museum of Scotland (Edinburgh, museology, museums, and modern art
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Book chapter
Early People
Eduardo Paolozzi (1924-2005) was one of the greatest Scottish and European artists of the 20th Century. He was a prolific sculptor and printmaker as well as an inspirational teacher. His was an exceptional talent, drawing on culture in all its forms, from Classical myths to comics and ephemera. Most would...Clarke, David V
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Book chapter
The hoard of gaming pieces from Lewis, Scotland: The context and meaning
The Lewis hoard of gaming pieces is possibly the most iconic find of medieval material culture discovered in the British Isles. They are more plentiful, more elaborate (combing both figurative and abstract pieces) and more opaque in their find circumstances than the pieces from Sandomierz, but like them appear to...Caldwell, David ; Hall, Mark A
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Lecture
Insights into the Dan Klein Collection
The British Museums Object Conservator Stefka Bargazova and National Museums Scotland Senior Curator of Modern & Contemporary Design Sarah Rothwell join us to discuss the Dan Klein Conservation Project, a wonderful collaborative project that they initiated in 2017 that brought conservators, curators, and practitioners together to share their knowledge to...Bargazova, Stefka ; Rothwell, Sarah
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Blog post
Objects in Place: the Eynhallow Sound, Orkney
Stone steps washed with waves and selkie songs glitter in the late summer gloaming. Roaring tides sweep in from all sides to batter the shore with ageless determination, steadily devouring the remnants of cairn-raisers, Picts, Norse, and crofters with equal indifference. The west wind catches a string of hanging seashells...Weinczok, David C
Orkney , Vikings, Objects In Place , Neolithic , Iron Age , and Archaeology
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Presentation
Ni’isjoohl memorial pole repatriation – an international panel discussion
The Nisga’a delegation, alongside staff from National Museums Scotland will participate in the first public panel discussion on the Ni’isjoohl Memorial Pole re-p/matriation. The discussion will be moderated by Barbara Fillion, Programme Officer for Culture with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. Among the topics addressed, the panel will discuss the...Giblin, John ; St Clair Inglis, Chante
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2008
Book chapter
The project
Around AD 800, a superbly carved cross-slab was erected at Hilton of Cadboll in north-east Scotland. The major part of the stone stand now in the National Museum of Scotland, and the story of what happened to it in the intervening centuries is told here.Clarke, David V ; Foster, Sally M
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2009
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2012
Journal article
Maximum Intervention: Renewal of a Māori Waka by George Nuku and National Museums Scotland
National Museums Scotland (NMS) has in its collections a Māori war canoe (A.UC.767) or Waka Taua from New Zealand. The Waka had been held in the Museum stores for many years and due to its incompleteness and poor state of repair had not been on public display. It was proposed...Stable, Charles
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2013
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2014
Journal article
Letter, on commemorative plaques and Hugh Miller
Taylor, Michael A
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2014
Journal article
Picture this
McLoughlin, Kevin
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2014
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2015
Journal article
Oronsay's sculptural heritage
A team consisting of an archaeologist, David Caldwell, a scientist, Susy Kirk, and two geologists, Simon Howard and Nigel Ruckley, report on a project re-examining the medieval stone carvings at Oronsay Priory.Caldwell, David H ; Kirk, Susy ; Howard, Simon ; Ruckley, Nigel
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2015
Book chapter
Japanese sculpture: a response
'Modern Japananese sculpture' is a topic that has been studied very little in the Western world, and works made in this period (1868-present) are rarely seen outside of their native country. One of our tasks at the Henry Moore Institute is to look at areas of sculpture studies that are...Buckland, Rosina
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2016
Book chapter
The jet-like material
Portmahomack on the Tarbat peninsula overlooking the Dornoch Firth is a fishing village with a 1,500-year-old history. In the sixth and seventh century it was a high-ranking centre with monumental cist burials and links to the equestrian class in England. In the eighth century it was a monastery, creating manuscripts...Hunter, Fraser
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2016
Book chapter
Gleaming eyes and the elaboration of Anglo-Saxon sculpture
This paper presents the results of the analysis of an Anglo-Saxon cross-shaft fragment from Aberlady, East Lothian that confirm the long-suspected belief that the drilled eye sockets found among Northumbrian and Mercian sculpture originally contained separate eye insets. A tin lining was positively identified in one of the drilled eye...Blackwell, Alice
polychromy, colour, iconography, Early Medieval, sculpture, Anglo-Saxon, and Insular
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2017
Journal article
The first known stereophotographs of Hugh Miller's cottage and the building of the Hugh Miller Monument, Cromarty, 1859
Two early stereophotographs of Hugh Miller's cottage at Cromarty have separate provenances and their original photographer is unknown, but they were apparently taken at the same session and from almost the same location. One shows the Hugh Miller Monument under construction. The monument's planning, funding and building are outlined. It...Taylor, Michael A ; Morrison-Low, A D
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2017
Book chapter
Revealing the archetype: the journey of a trecento Madonna and Child at the National Museum of Scotland
The National Museums Scotland Madonna and Child project sought to uncover and document the history of a fine polychrome wood carving attributed to The Master of the Gualino St Catherine and to prepare it for display. A new body of knowledge has been assembled by the interdisciplinary team. The conservation...de Bellaigue, Diana ; Troalen, Lore ; Richter, M ; Wong Rueda, M ; Palozzi, L …
polychromy, wood, Italy, Umbria, sculpture, Madonna, and 14th century
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2018
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2018
Journal article
Review of: The Wyvern collection: Medieval and Renaissance sculpture and metalwork by Paul Williamson
One of the world's major private collections of medieval sculpture and metalwork has now been cataloguedDectot, Xavier
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2019
Journal article
Round robins: Scotland's Neolithic carved stone balls
Hugo Anderson-Whymark has published digital 3D models of 60 carved stone balls in the collections of National Museums Scotland. He considers these eternally puzzling Neolithic objects.Anderson-Whymark, Hugo
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2020
Journal article
Iconic jewellery in space. Research on Modernist Nordic jewellery
Sarah Rothwell Curator of Modern & Contemporary Design, at the National Museums Scotland, Edinburgh has a special interest in Modernist Nordic jewellery, among other things. Her research included looking into the necklace and bracelet worn by Princess Leia in the 1977 film Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope,...Rothwell, Sarah
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2020
Journal article
A decorated carved stone ball and associated lithic scatter from the Blackford Estate, Sheriffmuir, Perthshire
A comparatively small number of carved stone balls have precise findspots and exceptionally few have been recovered from secure archaeological contexts. The discovery of a carved stone ball in pristine condition at Sheriffmuir during tree-planting in 2017 provided the opportunity to examine an accurate findspot and explore its archaeological and...Anderson-Whymark, Hugo ; Hall, Mark
later Neolithic, carved stone ball , lithic scatter , and pitchstone
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2020
Book chapter
Proud symbols of the prospering rural seamen: Scottish Church ship models and the Shipmaster’s Societies of North East Scotland in the late 17th century'
Britain's emergence as one of Europe's major maritime powers has all too frequently been subsumed by nationalistic narratives that focus on operations and technology. This volume, by contrast, offers a daring new take on Britain's maritime past. It brings together scholars from a range of disciplines to explore the manifold...Greiling, Meredith
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2020
Blog post
Romans in your letterbox
One of our most prized Roman artefacts has received the ultimate accolade – it’s featured on a Royal Mail stamp.Hunter, Fraser
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2020
Blog post
Geometric Variations . . Paolozzi the designer
Paolozzi is celebrated for his robust larger-than-life sculptures but as Sarah Rothwell, curator at National Museums Scotland points out, Paolozzi worked extensively & brilliantly as a designer on the smaller-scale.Rothwell, Sarah
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2021
Blog post
Royal roundel acquiring the James V / Marie de Guise armorial roundel
An ‘attic sale’ of objects from Dunrobin Castle gave National Museums Scotland the opportunity to acquire four armorial roundels. One of these roundels depicts the combined coat of arms of Marie de Guise and James V, parents of Mary, Queen of Scots. Dr Anna Groundwater discusses this roundel’s symbolism, its...Groundwater, Anna
New Acquisitions , Scottish History, Marie De Guise , John Knox , Edinburgh , and Mary Queen Of Scots
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2021
Journal article
The Statue of a Sistrum-Player in Montrose and Her Position in an Early Ptolemaic Theban Priestly Family
This article is the publication of an indurated limestone standing statue, now in Montrose Museum (ANGUSalive M1980.4578), identified as a Sistrum-player. The statue was collected in 1834 by Dr James Burnes IV, a relative of the Scottish poet Robert Burns, during a journey from India to Scotland. Stylistic features of...Potter, Daniel M
Karnak, priesthood, Scotland, Thebes, prosopography, and Ptolemaic sculpture
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2021
Journal article
The Ann Paludan Archive of Historical Chinese Sculptures
Anna Paludan (1928-2014) was a writer and art historian, who created an exceptional photographic archive of historical sculptures in China, accompanied by extensive research ana analysis embodied in three major books. The archive represents over thirty years of work by Ann in a subject area largely unrecognised at the time,...Cao, Qin ; Frame, Gladys
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2021
Blog post
Stories in stone the lost history of Indian sculpted deities
Friederike Voigt explains how research carried out 200 years ago has helped her piece together the lost history of sculpted deities brought to Scotland from IndiaVoigt, Friederike
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2021
Blog post
Taking the Buddha out of Buddhism
At first sight, two of our large Buddhist sculptures appear to have similar stories. Dig a little deeper, and everything is not as it seems. Our Japan Foundation Assistant Curator Marjolein de Raat compares these statues as she explores their origins, the Victorian fascination with the ‘exotic’ and cultural appropriation.De Raat, Marjolein
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2021
Conference paper (unpublished)
Taking the Buddha out of Buddhism: provenance of two Japanese Buddhist statues
National Museums Scotland have two large Buddhist sculptures in their collections: a statue of Amida Buddha that is on display in the Grand Gallery, and a statue of Sho-Kannon in the East Asia Gallery. Provenance research on these statues has shown that both were imported into the UK at the...De Raat, Marjolein
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2021
Interactive resource
Art, fashion and taste in a global context
Regency dress was shaped as much by the Neoclassical art movement and Greco-Roman dress as it was by Enlightenment theories and ambitions of Empire. In turn, fashion was depicted in classical art, sculpture and pottery. This final episode in the series explores the relationship between art and fashion as our...Miller, Marie ; Rauser, Amelia ; Blakey, Claire
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2021
Blog post
Artistic expressions of today: Sustainability and consumption
Over the last year, we have acquired several artefacts that discuss how the impact of the pandemic and wider socio-political subjects have inspired the creation of some remarkable works of art, craft and design that reflect these times. Sarah Rothwell, Senior Curator of Modern & Contemporary Design, concludes our mini-series...Rothwell, Sara
Jewellery , Sustainability, Contemporary Collecting, Contemporary Jewellery, and Climate
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2021
Blog post
Inspiring body, mind and spirit
It’s been over two months since I wrote my last blog post and once again our museums are closed, but we look forward to re-opening and a life beyond lockdown.Breward, Christopher
LGBT History Month , Digital Media , Sculpture, LGBTQIA+, and Art And Design
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2022
Book chapter
The King and I: Commemorating the privilege of royal statue dedication in Ramesside Deir El-Medina
It is generally understood that in ancient Egyptian statuary, “a private person is never sculpted together with the king”. However, an unusual small limestone statue in the collections of National Museums Scotland contradicts this understanding, depicting a man kneeling to offer a statue of a king (NMS A.1956.139). Clearly Ramesside...Maitland, Margaret
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2022
Blog post
An elite education: discovery of an ancient Athenian ephebic list
A stone monument with an ancient Greek inscription in the collections of National Museums Scotland was recently discovered to be a previously unknown, unpublished Athenian ephebic list. Principal Curator Margaret Maitland and the Attic Inscriptions in UK Collections project team explain the significance of this find, and what it tells...Maitland, Margaret
World Cultures, Archaeology , Ancient Greece , and Research
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2022
Lecture
The Ballachulish Goddess
Come along to Glencoe Folk Museum to learn about the mysterious Ballachulish Goddess from an expert in the field.Hunter, Fraser
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2022
Journal article
African Queen: an intact royal burial from Egypt reveals new insights into cultural connections
The identity of the ancient Egyptian ‘Qurna Queen’ remains a mystery over 100 years after the excavation of her intact burial. However, new research on her burial assemblage is revealing historic biases in interpretation and shedding light on Egypt’s place within African culture, as Margaret Maitland explains.Maitland, Margaret
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2022
Journal article
2. SCOTLAND
Sites explored in North of the Antonine Wall, The Antonine Wall, City of Glasgow, Falkirk and South of the Antonine Wall.Hunter, Fraser
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2022
Blog post
Objects in Place: Kilmartin Glen, Argyll
Every part of Scotland is historic, with stories for the telling. Whether rural or urban, landscapes and communities are the ultimate source of the objects we collect and display. Yet, it is easy to be so preoccupied with the objects themselves that we lose sight of where those objects were...Weinczok, David C
Scottish History, Bronze Age, Archaeology , Early Medieval Scotland , and Prehistory
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2022
Lecture
Viking Panic? Looking for the 9-12th centuries in Argyll
The story of early medieval Argyll is told through overarching narratives: the arrival of the Scots of Dál Riata; incoming missionaries in the age of saints; and the invasions of the Vikings. A recent reassessment of the National Museums Scotland collections from this period emphasises how material culture tells a... -
2022
Podcast
African Queen: how an intact royal burial from Egypt reveals new insights into cultural connections
On this episode of The PastCast, Margaret Maitland – Principal Curator of the Ancient Mediterranean at National Museums Scotland – explains why recent analyses of the objects are offering new perspectives on Egypt’s relationship with its southern neighbour, Nubia, in what is now northern Sudan and the southernmost area of...Henderson, Calum ; Maitland, Margaret
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2022
Blog post
Objects in Place: The Eildon Hills, Scottish Borders
The might of the Roman Empire is often likened to a shadow looming over the peoples along its ever-expanding frontiers. Yet, there is one place where this metaphor is inverted. As the winter sun sets behind the three peaks of the Eildon Hills in the Scottish Borders, it is the...Weinczok, David C
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2022
Journal article
Experiment, Experience and Enchant: Knowledge sharing between museums and contemporary practitioners
Knowledge sharing between contemporary practitioners and museum professionals can be more than just investigating how something is made. It is also about working together to understand why an object was created, and by whom; how each artefact has a story to tell, of its journey through time and the places...Maldonado, Adrián ; Rothwell, Sarah
sculpture, knowledge sharing, The Glenmorangie Commission, contemporary practitioners, museums, and Simone ten Hompel
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2023
Book review
Review of: The Circular Archetype in Microcosm: the carved stone balls of late Neolithic Scotland. Chris L Stewart-Moffitt
Carved stone balls are on of Scotland's most intriguing Neolithic artefacts.Anderson-Whymark, Hugo
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2023
Journal article
The geological and historical milieu of an ornamental cephalopod limestone (‘orthoceratite limestone’, Ordovician, Sweden) used in the Clerk Mausoleum (1684), St Mungo's Kirkyard, Penicuik, Scotland
A slab of cephalopod limestone bears a dedicatory Latin inscription on the mausoleum built around 1684 by Sir John Clerk of Penicuik (1649–1722) for his wife Elizabeth Henderson (1658–83) at St Mungo's Church, Penicuik, near Edinburgh, Scotland. The stone is identified on sedimentological and palaeontological evidence and historical context as... -
2023
Blog post
Inspiring Women: Helen Monro Turner
Helen Monro Turner (1901 – 1977) was a hugely influential Scottish glass engraver, designer, educator, and illustrator, as well as a highly respected role model for women pursuing careers as glass artists, designers, and makers. Her prominence in 20th century British glass made important inroads in a field which, until...Rothwell, Sarah