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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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Lecture
Re-examining the Rubers Law hoard
In 1863 a hoard of bronze vessels and other items was found on the slopes of the hillfort of Rubers Law, near Hawick. Although it crops up in the literature, it has received only cursory attention. In the course of preparing it for display in the revamped Trimontium Trust museum...Hunter, Fraser
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Lecture
Beyond Treasure: new findings from fieldwork on Scotland’s prehistoric hoards
Hoards evoke stories and generate questions: Why do people collect things, both now and in the past? How do ordinary things become treasured objects? And why do we find these discoveries so fascinating? Hoards help us imagine particular events – the moment of burial, the moment of discovery – but...Freeman, Emily ; Knight, Matthew
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Book chapter
Please touch
The 4th EC Conference on "Research for protection, conservation an enhancement of cultural heritage, opportunities for European enterprises" was held in Strasbourg o 22-24/11/2000. The conference was organised under the 5th Framework Programme, Key Action 'City of Tomorrow and Cultural Heritage' (1999-2002). It was organised by the French Presidency of...Tate, Jim
cultural cooperation, technology, small and medium-sized enterprises, heritage protection, research and development, European undertaking, and cultural heritage
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Book chapter
Investigation of a potentiostatic reduction treatment for leaded copper alloys
The corrosion and conversion of highly leaded copper alloys is a problem for many collections. This was investigated using the Covesea coins as a case study. These coins were actively corroding, producing a white, powdery corrosion product. Some coins were completely disintegrated. Potentiostatic reduction was investigated as a possible technique...Spencer, Helen
conservation, leaded copper alloys, potentiostatic reduction, and Covesea coins
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Book chapter
The analytical characterisation of the main component found in logwood dyed textile samples after hydrochloric acid extraction
The triennial meetings of the ICOM Committee for Conservation (ICOM-CC) are widely regarded as the most significant global events in the heritage conservation calendar. At each Congress, the membership of the ICOM-CC are brought together to report and to review current research. The meetings offer the conservation professional a unique...Hulme, Alison N ; McNab, Hamish ; Peggie, David A ; Quye, Anita ; Vanden Berghe, I …
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Book chapter
The application of liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry and accelerated light ageing for the analytical identification of yellow flavonoid dyes in historical tapestries
Papers in this volume cover various aspects of the deterioration of textiles and the different scientific techniques that can be applied to investigate the characteristics of historic textiles, their fibres, dyes etc. The authors include textile, paper and painting conservators, conservation scientists, chemists, archaeologists, engineers, biochemists and a zoologist. This...Hulme, Alison N ; McNab, Hamish ; Quye, Anita ; Peggie, David A
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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
Evidence for wax on pottery from the Pithos House'. In: Diane Bolger, Edgar Peltenburg, Anita Quye, Sarah Ritson and F. M. K. Stephen 'Pottery archive report'
An interesting mid-third millennium BC structure, the Pithos House, was uncovered during excavations at Kissonerga-Mosphilia. Circular (c. 10 m Diam) with a central hearth like others at this site, it was somewhat unusual in respect of the extraordinary amount of ceramic debris covering the floor. Although the building had been...Quye, Anita ; Ritson, S
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Book chapter
Conservation and analysis of deteriorating nineteenth and twentieth-century British glass in the National Museums of Scotland
The National Museums of Scotland collections includes about 2000 19th and 20th-century British glass artefacts. An initial conservation survey in 1996 identified 153 artefacts as actively deteriorating (Cobo del Arco 1999). Examinations of additional artefacts is ongoing and 212, c.20% of those surveyed to date, are deteriorating. The visible signs...Eremin, Katherine ; Cobo del Arco, B ; Robinet, L ; Gibson, L T
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Book chapter
Understanding glass deterioration in museum collections: a multi-disciplinary approach
Raman spectroscopy and secondary ion mass spectrometry were used to investigate chemical and structural changes in soda and soda-lime glass exposed to organic pollutants under ambient and accelerated ageing conditions. Raman spectroscopy reveals modification of the glass structure non-destructively, in situ, and as a function of depth. The pollutants caused...Robinet, L ; Fearn, Sarah ; Eremin, Katherine
Raman spectroscopy, deteriorated glass, soda silicate glass, secondary ion mass spectrometry, and organic pollutants
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Book chapter
Alien collecting: speculative museology
Scotland in Space presents dialogues that imagine and explore Scotland’s space futures. In each of the book’s sections, a science fiction story is accompanied by essays responding to the ideas evoked, to produce cross-disciplinary discussions about how contemporary developments in Scottish space science and industry might shape our futures.Phillipson, Tacye
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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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Collecting 21st-Century Science, Technology and Medicine in Scotland
On 6 June 2017 a group of museum professionals with shared interests in contemporary collecting science, technology and medicine assembled at the National Museum of Scotland to share best practice and lessons learned in this area. After presentations from some of those involved in Scottish collections, different perspectives were provided...Robertson, Haileigh ; Goggins, Sophie ; Alberti, S J M M
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Presentation
From recreation to inspiration: Glenmorangie craft commissons at National Museums Scotland 2008-2020
Organic items rarely survive and the evidence for these lost objects is often secondary from metal fittings or artistic depictions. To understand how these objects would have been experienced and the skills used to make them, the Glenmorangie Research Project has commissioned artists to recreate Early Medieval artefacts that rarely...Maldonado, Adrián
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Conference paper (unpublished)
The ethics of collecting COVID-19
The health crisis of the years 2020 and 2021 will remain deeply engraved in everyone's memory. In France, the world of museums has been strongly impacted in its activities, its cultural programming and the reception by its audiences. However, direct employment in public sector museums has certainly been less affected...Goggins, Sophie
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Materialising Mary: challenging objects
ShBemss was established in 2020 as an opportunity for early modernists to share their research online during the challenging conditions of that year. This is an international seminar series, drawing speakers and participants from across the UK, Europe, North America, Australasia – and the network continues to grow! The series...Groundwater, Anna
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Lecture
Making sense of silver: the hacking of the Traprain Treasure
RSE Project: Narratives of Roman Scotland in the Digital Age. Organisers: Manuel Fernández-Götz, Chiara Bonacchi and Rebecca JonesHunter, Fraser
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Poster (unpublished)
Battling Booklice
Jackson, Joseph ; Jeanne , Robinson ; Whiffin , Ashleigh L
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Expert investigators: Uncovering unacknowledged Egyptian contributions to archaeology in 19th century archives
Narratives about early Egyptology have typically been framed in terms of the heroic efforts of adventurous collectors and brilliant scholars, few of whom acknowledged the debt owed to the Egyptians upon whose local knowledge and labour they relied. However, the innovative Scottish archaeologist Alexander Henry Rhind (1833–1863), in summarizing the...Maitland, Margaret
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Egyptian-Nubian Cultural Connections: Reconsidering the Qurna Burial Group at National Museums Scotland
Maitland, Margaret
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Objects of Power: Australian Aboriginal breastplates and Scottish pastoralists
Clark, Ali
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Doctoral thesis
Motivation for creating the Museum of Scotland, and the educational effectiveness of its history content for the visiting public
My aim was to investigate the motivation for creating the Museum of Scotland, and the educational effectiveness of its history content for the visiting public,. Part One examines the creation and purpose of the Museum of Scotland. What was its origin? Why have a Museum of Scotland at all? What...Cramond, Ronald Duncan
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Lecture
Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard
Buried at the beginning of the 10th century in Dumfries and Galloway, the Hoard lay undisturbed for a thousand years before being discovered by a metal detectorist and excavated by an archaeologist in September 2014. Four years of painstaking conservation and research has restored these rare and unique treasures to...Goldberg, Martin ; Maldonado, Adrián
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Journal article
A century of Roman silver - new views on the Traprain Treasure
Dr Fraser Hunter provides a timely reassessment of the Traprain Treasure with the results of a ten-year research project that invites us to reassess why the treasure was 'hacked' and what this can tell us about Roman links to Scotland.Hunter, Fraser
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Lecture
The Galloway Hoard
Goldberg, D Martin
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Lecture
The Galloway Hoard
Goldberg, Martin
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Lecture
Bones, teeth and gum: How museums can contribute to improving animal welfare
How museums can contribute to improving animal welfareKitchener, Andrew C
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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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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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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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Book
Photography and the Doctor: John Adamson of St Andrews
Dr John Adamson (1809-70) was the older brother of the better-known Robert Adamson (1821-48), famous for his pioneering photography work with D.O. Hill. John Adamson's photography had to be fitted in around his medical practice in St Andrews. The photographs in this book are drawn mainly from two extremely early...Morrison-Low, A D ; Bruce, David
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Book
Plastics: collecting and conserving
From plastic use by early astronauts to its broad application by today's art curators and experts in museums and galleries for everything from storage to high-tech crating, this authoritative publication serves the needs for the professional and layperson alike as a reference.Quye, Anita ; Williamson, Colin
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Book
The carnyx in Iron Age Europe : the Deskford carnyx in its European context [1]
The carnyx, an animal-headed bronze horn, once echoed across Iron Age Europe. Now, after centuries of silence, this book presents a full picture of this dramatic instrument for the first time. It considers the rare surviving fragments, with a detailed study of the Deskford carnyx from north-east Scotland, alongside depictions...Hunter, Fraser
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Book
The carnyx in Iron Age Europe : the Deskford carnyx in its European context [2]
The carnyx, an animal-headed bronze horn, once echoed across Iron Age Europe. Now, after centuries of silence, this book presents a full picture of this dramatic instrument for the first time. It considers the rare surviving fragments, with a detailed study of the Deskford carnyx from north-east Scotland, alongside depictions...Hunter, Fraser
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Book
Histeridae, Sphaeritidae and Silphidae of Britain and Ireland
The Histeridae and Silphidae atlas covers 75 beetle species in three families. Histeridae: the clown beetles. Sphaeritidae: the false clown beetles Silphidae: the carrion beetles. Many of these large charismatic beetles are associated with decaying organic matter, including carcasses, dung and dead wood. Several species are widespread and common in...Lane, S A ; Lucas, C B H ; Whiffin, Ashleigh L
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Book chapter
Museum nature
From Aztec accounts of hibernating hummingbirds to contemporary television spectaculars, human encounters with nature have long sparked wonder, curiosity and delight. Written by leading scholars, this richly illustrated volume offers a lively introduction to the history of natural history, from the sixteenth century to the present day. Covering an extraordinary...Alberti, S J M M
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Book chapter
Sex, art and museums: on the changing institutional censorship of Shunga
rt is continuously subjected to insidious forms of censorship. This may be by the Church to guard against moral degeneration, by the State to promote a specific political agenda or by the art market, to elevate one artist above another. Now, and in the last century, artwork that touches on...Boyd, Louise
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Book chapter
Probing the factors which control degradation in museum collections of cellulose acetate artefacts
Cellulose acetate artefacts in museum collections cover a period from the early 1900's to the present day. Conservators have observed that certain of these objects are showing signs of warping, crazing, cracking, discolouration and shrinkage accompanied by a strong smell of acetic acid. Previous studies on cellulose nitrate artefacts show...Ballany, Jane M ; Littlejohn, D ; Pethrick, R P ; Quye, Anita
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Book chapter
The use of accelerated ageing tests for studying the degradation of cellulose nitrate
Previous studies have shown that high levels of sulphate in cellulose nitrate artefacts may be a cause of increased degradation. Accelerated ageing tests have been used to study and monitor the deterioration of prepared cellulose nitrate samples and artefacts over time. An evaluation has been made of the effects of... -
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
Plastics conservation – Barbie™ and friends
The chemical sciences and their applications are all around us. Many museums and galleries have scientific departments, and collectors of objects that may not even be "antique" in the strict definition of the word often need to have some scientific knowledge to stop their collection deteriorating. This resource shows how... -
Book chapter
Degradation studies of cellulose nitrate plastics
This book addresses the interaction of principle and practice, of materials, techniques and ideas, which characterise contemporary conservation as a whole.Stewart, R ; Littlejohn, D ; Pethrick, R P ; Quye, Anita ; Tennent, N H
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Book chapter
Monitoring of damage to historic tapestries (MODHT): a newly initiated EU project
The trade in dyestuffs has played an important role in the economic history of many nations. In medieval Europe this is demonstrated by the important place held by woad in the economy of many countries, but while the woad industry of Toulouse or Erfurt is quite well known, that of...Quye, Anita
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Book chapter
Development of analytical techniques for the study of natural yellow dyes in historic textiles
Interest in all aspects of dyestuffs has grown considerably since an informal meeting of researchers twenty years ago developed into the annual meetings of Dyes in History and Archaeology, with the journal of the same name publishing a selection of papers presented. Analysis has revealed that the early 20th-century clothing...Ferreira, Ester S B ; Quye, Anita ; McNab, Hamish ; Wouters, J ; Boon, J J …
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Book chapter
Historical and analytical research of dyes for early Scottish tartans
Papers in this volume cover various aspects of the deterioration of textiles and the different scientific techniques that can be applied to investigate the characteristics of historic textiles, their fibres, dyes etc. The authors include textile, paper and painting conservators, conservation scientists, chemists, archaeologists, engineers, biochemists and a zoologist. This...Cheape, Hugh ; Quye, Anita
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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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Collecting and displaying Japanese culture in 19th-century Scotland
Disciplinary boundaries are inevitable within a complex academic system and as those boundaries shift with time, the problem of speaking across them only increases. The scholars today who study the Japanese collections held by British museums are primarily art historians or archaeologists, but the context in which these collections were...Buckland, Rosina
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Lecture
Alexander Henry Rhind and Archaeology
A look at how Rhind’s work in Scotland informed his pioneering work in Egypt, advocacy for the protection of antiquities in both Scotland and Egypt, and his role in devising the original displays of British, Scottish, and Egyptian artefacts at the National Museum of AntiquitiesMaitland, Margaret
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Keeping natural history collections healthy: preventing deterioration in store and on display
Ogilvie, Ticca M A
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Conference paper (unpublished)
National Museums Scotland, Digital Collecting in Museums, 2020
A multi-disciplinary group of museum and heritage professionals with shared interests in collecting born-digital material met at the National Museum of Scotland on 11 March 2020 to discuss best practice and opportunities. The symposium included a range of papers outlining different approaches to collecting and interpreting digital entities, with definite...Alberti, Samuel J M M ; Angus, Sonny ; Laurenson, Sarah ; Osborn, Molly ; Volkmer, Laura M B
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Lecture
The Storrar Coverlet: a double weave tradition in Scotland and Scandinavia
Coverlet in red and yellow wool, woven in a double weave with a geometric design of birds, a chequered band and the date 1729 at each end. Formerly in the possession of the Storrar family of Nether Urquhart, Fife: probably made in Sweden.Wyld, Helen
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Conference paper (unpublished)
From Edo to Edinburgh: Curating Japan at National Museums Scotland
The conference will explore cultural connections between the visual and material cultures of Scotland and Japan. It will bring together academics, independent researchers, curators, archivists and artists to share new research in the area, as well as to exchange ideas, and engage in lively discussions related to the shared art...Boyd, Louise
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Lecture
Exploring the climate crisis through collections and programming at National Museums Scotland
Climate change has a profound impact on communities of the North and their way of life. As Russia assumes the Chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021-2023, we open a conversation about the Arctic as a unique eco system and focus on the sustainable development of the region and what...Higgitt, Rebekah
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Master's dissertation
After-hours events: a product for attracting, engaging and retaining new musum audiences? A case study of National Museums Scotland
Cultural heritage is recognised as one of the major contributors to the economy. As a result, museums have moved away from their traditional role as collectors and conservators of artefacts of historical importance, to become more audience focused. The recognition by museums of an obligation to meet the needs and...Easson, Hilary
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Doctoral thesis
Making music of the world accessible: three significant non-Western music collections in European Museums
This sub-thesis presents a study of non-Western music collections held in three separate European museums. The museums under investigation are the Horniman Museum in London, the Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam and the National Museums Scotland in Edinburgh. It surveys how these museums acquire, research interpret and exhibit non-Western music collections in...Moloney, Kylie
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Democratising knowlege and visualising progress: illustrations from Chambers's Encylopaedia, 1859-1892
In the 19th century, the Scottish firm of W. & R. Chambers transformed the publishing model of encyclopaedias from a book aimed at the elite to a tool for mass education. This multidisciplinary study examines the design of the first two editions of Chambers's Encyclopaedia, focusing on their illustrations and...Roberto, Rose
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The development and application of analytical methods for the identification of dyes on historical textiles
The analytical investigation of several historically important natural yellow and red dye sources is presented, extending previous work on the chemical characterisation of the acid hydrolysed extracts from dyed yarns. The PDA HPLC studies of weld (Reseda luteola L.) dyed yarn extracts found that neither the substrate nor additional steps...Peggie, David A
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Lecture
Conservation of the Galloway Hoard. The richest collection of rare and unique Viking-age objects ever found in Britain or Ireland.
The hoard was found in 2014 and an exhibition is now on tour in Scotland after extensive research and conservation work. It was a true conservation challenge having a variety of material (glass, rock crystal and other minerals, minerally preserved organics) in addition to the precious metals. The lecture will...Goldberg, Martin ; Davis, Mary
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Lecture
Hidden treasure of National Museums Scotland revealed: A silk rug with Tree of Life by Kashani master weaver Mohtasham
This fine silk rug features a large flowering tree. Likely never used, the multiple colours of the rug’s dazzling array of blossoms are magnificently preserved. The weaver of this exquisite piece, Hajj Molla Mohtasham, ran one of the most successful carpet manufactures in 19th-century Kashan. Mohtasham rugs are highly prized...Voigt, Friederike
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Lecture
Climate change: a time travel adventure
Join climate campaigner and author Alice Bell in a trip through time to the decisions, inventions and accidents which created the warming world we’re living in today – and how it could have ended up quite differently. Beginning with the discovery of CO2 in Edinburgh, travel through the pioneering age...Bell, Alice ; Higgitt, Rebekah
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Complex identities and the Galloway Hoard
It is ten years since the Silverdale Hoard, one of the largest Viking-age hoards ever found in England, was discovered in a field in Lancashire. To celebrate its display at the JORVIK Viking Centre throughout 2022, the Richard Hall Symposium this year focuses on hoards: their concealment, their rediscovery, and...Goldberg, D Martin
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Lecture
The Galloway Hoard
Goldberg, D Martin
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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
Ancient African Queens: New perspectives on Black history
Join our panel as they discuss how reassessing 19th and 20th century colonial attitudes can bring new perspectives to fascinating aspects of ancient Egyptian culture and its place in African history.Maitland, Margaret ; Ashby, Solange
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Lecture
Ice Age Fauna of Scotland and the Loch Ryan Mammoths
Scotland is renowned today for its rich and varied wildlife but have you ever wondered what lived here in the past? Andrew Kitchener, Principle Curator of Vertebrates at National Museum of Scotland, presents a talk about creatures that lived in Scotland during the Ice Ages. The talk will include a...Kitchener, Andrew
Stranraer, mammoth, Ice age, and Rhins of Galloway
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Journal article
Northern Modernist Jewellery – a museum collecting project
In 2015 National Museums Scotland was awarded an Art Fund New Collecting Award to collect, research and disseminate jewellery designed and created in Britain and the Nordic States between 1945-1978. The project highlighted a legacy of transnational influences and traditions within Northern Europe, particularly shared cultural heritage, the influence of...Rothwell, Sarah
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Lecture
The Fossil Insects of Scotland
Fossil insects are rare in Scotland, though those that are found are significant and are from four periods: Specimens from the Lower Devonian Rhynie Chert of Aberdeenshire are the oldest in the world; a few species are known from the Upper Carboniferous Coal Measures of Ayrshire and Fife; as yet...Ross, Andrew J
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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