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Library Special Collections: Robert Riddell Manuscript Collection Volume 8 (SAS 586). A journal of a tour in Scotland in 1789, made by Captain Grose and Captain Riddell.
Transcription of Robert Riddell Manuscript Collection Volume 8 (SAS 586). A journal of a tour in Scotland in 1789, made by Captain Grose and Captain Riddell.National Museums Scotland
Special Collections, journal transcription , exploration, and Archives
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Other
Robert Riddell manuscripts A Collection of Scottish Antiquities, selected by R.R. Vol 2 1786
‘A collection of Scottish antiquities, selected by R.R. Vol.2d., 1786’: accounts of Border and other Scottish families (pp.1, 22, 25). ‘Scottish antiquities, historical and genealogical, collected by Capt. Robert Riddell....1786’ (p.69): genealogies and antiquities of various parts of Scotland; copies of early documents; account of raids on the Western Border...National Museums Scotland
journal transcription , exploration, Archives, and Special Collections
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Interactive resource
Chalcolithic and Bronze Age
The British Chalcolithic period is now widely recognised as beginning during the 25th century BC. It is marked by the appearance of the first metal artefacts, produced from copper and gold and the introduction of new material culture and other practices from the European Continent (Allen et al 2012; Parker...Sheridan, J A ; Knight, Matthew G
Chalcolithic, archaeological period, Early Bronze Age, Prehistoric Scotland, Late Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age, and Research Framework
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Interactive resource
Early Medieval
This early medieval chapter deals with the period around AD 350–1058 and will follow a new structure which aligns with those used for the medieval and post-medieval chapters. In the past the period was often viewed as ‘the Dark Ages’ at the end of ‘prehistory’. The emphasis was on the...Strachan, David ; Maldonado, Adrián ; Hall, Mark ; Mitchell , Juliette
Research Framework, early medieval , archaeological period, and Scotland
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Journal article
We need to encourage a plurality of voices in collections-based research
Stories have too narrow a perspective, says John Giblin and Phoenix ArcherGiblin, John ; Archer, Phoenix
Exchange, African, Caribbean and South Asian diaspora heritage communities, Museology, Colonial Histories and Legacies, and Collections Research
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Book
Donald Ross and the Highland Clearances 'Yet still the Blood is Strong'
The Highland Clearances was a dark episode in Scottish history when many thousands of people were forced off lands that they and their kin had lived on for generations. Some boarded ships destined for the colonies of America and Australia, others ended up on small barren plots by the coast...Ross, Andrew J
evictions, emigration , venerable societies , highland clearances, biography , and Donald Ross (1813-1882)
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Magazine article
Donald Ross and the highland Clearances
Andrew J. Ross provides the background to his new book on the life of his relative Donald Ross, a critic of the highland clearances who raised money and provided supplies for sufferers of the potato famine, but ultimately became a victim of his own success and emigrated to Canada following...Ross, Andrew J
venerable societies, emigration, highland clearances, biography, and Donald Ross (1813-1882)
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Journal article
A Thomas Rathbone & Joseph Machin letter
I purchased a letter on a postal history website as it was from Thomas Rathbone, and which had been sent from his pottery at Portobello on the 17th June 1817 and addressed to the important Staffordshire potter Joseph Machin.Haggarty, George R
Joseph Machin, Thomas Rathbone, pottery history, Jack Dunlop, letter correspondence, and Messer's Leggat stoneware merchant
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Blog post
Tartan trendsetting in our library catalogue
Tartan’s bold and sometimes scandalous history is retold in 19th century pattern books and trade catalogues at the National Museums Scotland Library that form part of our Special Collections. Assistant Librarian Jennifer Higgins puts the spotlight on several of these books to better understand how the mass adoption of Highland...Higgins, Jennifer
Tartan, Research Library , National Museum Of Scotland , National War Museum , Scottish Fashion , and Books
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Abstract
A moment in time: Cloth culture of an early medieval hoard buried in Galloway, Scotland, 900 CE
Cloth culture provides the framework to recognise the cultural significance of an assemblage of textiles and leather in a particular time and place. This paper examines the cloth culture of the textiles, skin products and braids that wrap and connect an assemblage of metal and precious objects that form the...Makin, Alexandra ; Harris, Susanna
Galloway Hoard, Cloth Culture, textile and leather assemblages, Early Medieval Scotland, and braids
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Abstract
Connecting organic and inorganic materials in the Viking-Age Galloway Hoard
Research into hoards has often focused on metal objects and while the Galloway Hoard contains over 5kg of silver, and more gold objects than any extant hoard surviving from Viking-Age Britain and Ireland, it is the other materials that make it outstanding. Wood, leather, and textile (silk, linen and wool)...Goldberg, Martin
Early Medieval Scotland, Wood, Galloway Hoard, glass, rock crystal and mineral elements , wrapping, leather, textiles, and bundling
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Abstract
Twisted reflections of life: creating communities of death through Iron Age Italic funerary dress
The early Iron Age communities of Italy are known mainly through their funerary records. This paper is a reflection on my PhD research analysing Iron Age Italic communities through their funerary dress, applying material and sensory analyses to the evidence for published funerary dress assemblages from the cemeteries of Bazzano,...Prew, George
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Journal article
Narrow-beaked trogons from the early Eocene London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, UK)
We describe multiple partial skeletons of a new trogon species from the early Eocene London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, UK), which are among the oldest fossils of the Trogoniformes. , gen. et sp. nov. has a much narrower and more gracile beak than extant trogons, which denotes different ecological attributes...Mayr, Gerald ; De Pietri, Vanesa L ; Kitchener, Andrew C
Eotrogon stenorhynchus, gen. et sp. nov. , Phylogeny, Fossil birds , Paratrogon gallicus , Aves , and Evolution
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Journal article
The prevalence of vestigial teeth in two beaked whale species from the North Atlantic
Beaked whales, Family Ziphiidae, occur in deep offshore and oceanic seas, where they are very difficult to study, so that much of our knowledge about them is derived from stranded animals. Most beaked whales (e.g., genera and ) have only one pair of mandibular teeth. A reduced dentition is widely...Kitchener, Andrew C ; Herman, Jeremy S ; Doeschate, Mariel ten ; Davison, Nicholas J ; Brownlow, Andrew …
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Website
Whit's in a name: Scottish connections to mineral names
In mineralogy, as in other natural sciences, there are strict rules on the naming of mineral species. The vast majority of minerals are named after a person or a place. Many of these names have strong Scottish connections, while others are a little less obvious. The naming of minerals. In...Davidson, Peter
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Presentation
Marine invertebrate collection
Next, the curator of the invertebrates at National Museums Scotland, Sankurie Pye, will talk about the fascinating diversity of specimens they have in their collections and why collecting these specimens is crucial for science and conservation. The National Museum Scotland are renowned worldwide for their collections, so get ready to...Pye, Sankuri
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Journal article
Molecular fingerprints resolve affinities of Rhynie chert organic fossils
The affinities of extinct organisms are often difficult to resolve using morphological data alone. Chemical analysis of carbonaceous specimens can complement traditional approaches, but the search for taxon-specific signals in ancient, thermally altered organic matter is challenging and controversial, partly because suitable positive controls are lacking. Here, we show that...Loron , C C ; Rodriguez Dzul, E ; Orr, P J ; Gromov, A V ; Fraser, Nicholas C …
Eukaryote , Biogeochemistry, Palaeontology , and Prokaryote
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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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Lecture
Sacrifice, scrap or something else? Practices of metalwork deposition in Late Bronze Age Britain and Ireland
Throughout the Bronze Age, large quantities of metal artefacts were deposited across Europe. Interpretations often centre around whether these deposits may have been sacrificial offerings to deities or else discarded scrap metal intended for recycling. These grand ideas mask the individual decisions local communities made when depositing their objects, such...Knight, Matthew
recycle, archaeology, Bronze Age Europe, metal depositpion, worship, and sacrificial objects
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Lecture
Feasting with Latinus: the earliest Christians of Whithorn
The excavations led by the late Peter Hill at Whithorn, Dumfries and Galloway are widely understood as revealing one of the earliest monasteries in Britain. New analysis and dating evidence by the Cold Case Whithorn project is forcing a rethink of the earliest phases of the sequence. A poorly-understood late... -
Journal article
Pests or prey? Micromammal species within an ancient anthropic environment at the Norse settlement site of Tuquoy (Westray, Orkney)
Micromammals, like rodents and shrews, adapt rapidly to take advantage of new food sources, habitats and ecological niches, frequently thriving in anthropogenic environments. Their remains, often retrieved during archaeological investigations, can be a valuable source of information about the past environmental conditions as well as interspecies interactions and human activity....Romaniuk, Andrzej A ; Troalen, Lore G ; Bendrey, Robin ; Herman, Jeremy S ; Owen, Olwyn …
commensalism, introductions, Orkney, micromammal, archaeology, and predation
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Journal article
Provocation: Are museums relevant for social and environmental justice today?
JG: I work at National Museums Scotland. Our vision is 'inspiring people: addressing the challenges of our age'. Arguably, two of the most important of these challenges are social and environmental inequality. I've worked in or with museums for over twenty years. One of the reasons that I have done...Asante, Sheila ; Cummins, Nelson ; Giblin, John ; Loovers, Jan Peter Laurens
contemporary collecting, climate change, museology, colonial collections, museum, and curation
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Journal article
‘South Kensington is practically as far away as Paris or Munich’: the making of industrial collections in Edinburgh, Newcastle and Birmingham
The provocation within the heart of the Congruence Engine leads us to consider not only the connections between our industrial collections, but the differences which shine a light on the gaps that exist nationally as well as institutionally due to the unique ways in which those collections were built. Emerging... -
Journal article
Development and Application of Desorption Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry for Historical Dye Analysis
A desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) source was built and attached to a Bruker 7T SolariX FT-ICR-MS for the in situ analysis of 14 early synthetic dyestuffs. Optimization using silk and wool cloths dyed with rhodamine B concluded that when using a commercial electrospray emitter (part number: 0601815, Bruker Daltonik), a...Sandström, Edith ; Vettorazzo, Chiara ; Mackay, C Logan ; Troalen, Lore G ; Hulme, Alison N
Solvents, Dyes and pigments, Biomimetic materials, Ions, and Fibers
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Journal article
A new long‐necked archosauromorph from the Guanling Formation (Anisian, Middle Triassic) of southwestern China and its implications for neck evolution in tanystropheids
A long neck is an evolutionary innovation convergently appearing in multiple tetrapod lineages, including groups of plesiosaurs, non-archosauriform archosauromorphs, turtles, sauropodomorphs, birds, and mammals. Among all tetrapods both extant and extinct, two Triassic archosauromorphs, Tanystropheus and Dinocephalosaurus, have necks that are particularly elongated relative to the lengths of their trunks....Wang, Wei ; Spiekman, Stephan N F ; Zhao, Lijun ; Rieppel, Olivier ; Scheyer, Torsten M …
Triassic archosauromorphs, Dinocephalosaurus, tetrapods, evolution, and Tanystropheus
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Journal article
New machaeridian data from the Upper Ordovician of Scotland: palaeoecological and global palaeobiogeographical implications
New machaeridian material housed in the National Museum of Scotland alongside the type material held in the Natural History Museum London and the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Cambridge, is documented here from the Ordovician of Girvan. The specimens are included in four taxa, three of these in open nomenclature.... -
Journal article
The landscape of tolerated genetic variation in humans and primates
Personalized genome sequencing has revealed millions of genetic differences between individuals, but our understanding of their clinical relevance remains largely incomplete. To systematically decipher the effects of human genetic variants, we obtained whole-genome sequencing data for 809 individuals from 233 primate species and identified 4.3 million common protein-altering variants with...Gao, Hong ; Hamp, Tobias ; Ede, Jeffrey ; Schraiber, Joshua G ; McRae, Jeremy …
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Journal article
A global catalog of whole-genome diversity from 233 primate species
The rich diversity of morphology and behavior displayed across primate species provides an informative context in which to study the impact of genomic diversity on fundamental biological processes. Analysis of that diversity provides insight into long-standing questions in evolutionary and conservation biology and is urgent given severe threats these species...Kuderna, Lukas F K ; Gao, Hong ; Janiak, Mareike C ; Kuhlwilm, Martin ; Orkin, Joseph D …
evolutionary and conservation biology, primates, and genomic diversity study
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Other
Library Special Collections: National Museums Scotland Archives
National Museums Scotland Archives Incorporating: • Industrial Museum of Scotland • Edinburgh University Natural History Museum • Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art • National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland • Royal Scottish Museum • National Museums ScotlandNational Museums Scotland
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Other
Robert Riddell manuscripts A Collection of Scottish Antiquities, selected by R.R. Vol 3
A collection of Scottish antiquities...Vol.3d., 1786’: accounts of English families and Cumbrian antiquities (p.2); ‘A dissertation on the ancient fortresses and castles in Scotland,’ by Riddell (p.58). ‘Historical and genealogical collections....1786’ (p.173): ‘Icolmkill,’ by the Earl of Buchan, 1786 (p.187) (not the same as the paper in Archaeologia Scotica., I).Lists...National Museums Scotland
journal transcription , exploration, Special Collections, and Archives
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Other
Robert Riddell manuscripts A Collection of Scottish Antiquities, selected by R.R. Vol 6
‘1788’ (title page torn away). ‘A catalogue of great and learned men born in Dumfriesshire’ (p.36); a history of Sweetheart (pp.7, 52), with a satirical poem on William Copland of Colliston, who sold it for demolition (p.55); the ballad, ‘The Bedesman on Nithsdale’ (p.56); anecdotes of Prince Charles Edward (p.147);...National Museums Scotland
journal transcription , Special Collections, exploration, and Archives
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Research report
Surfacing the National Collections: adapting image cataloguing standards to transform access to National Museums Scotland's online collections
This report summarises the findings and outputs of a knowledge exchange project between the University of Glasgow and National Museums Scotland (the Museums) which was intended to inform image cataloguing standards through an audience-centred approach. A recent AHRC-Towards-a-National-Collection-funded report identified a discrepancy between metadata standards used by the Museums’ staff... -
Journal article
Artefacts of Arran pitchstones from Slewcairn Early Neolithic funerary monument, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland
Between 1973 and 1980, the late Lionel Masters excavated an Early Neolithic long cairn at Slewcairn, close to the Solway Firth in south-west Scotland (NGR NX 9239 6142; Canmore ID 65491). The monumement is situated on the slope of Meikle Hard Hill, 6 km from the coast and 15 km...Ballin, Torben ; Sheridan, J A
pitchstone, assemblage report, long cairn, and Early Neolithic Scotland
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Book
The Old Red Sandstone, or New Walks in an Old Field
Facsimile edition of this classic book first published in 1841. Ross-shire-born polymath Hugh Miller (1802-56), self-educated stonemason, geologist and writer, was famous in his lifetime across the English-speaking world. On one level, The Old Red Sandstone, is a description of the geology of Cromarty, Ross-shire, with diversions into its scenery,...Miller, Hugh
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Book
The Old Red Sandstone, or New Walks in an Old Field
Facsimile edition of this classic book first published in 1841. Ross-shire-born polymath Hugh Miller (1802-56), self-educated stonemason, geologist and writer, was famous in his lifetime across the English-speaking world. On one level, The Old Red Sandstone, is a description of the geology of Cromarty, Ross-shire, with diversions into its scenery,...Miller, Hugh
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Blog post
Brooching questions: conserving a silver brooch from the Galloway Hoard
After spending over 1,000 years in the soils of Galloway, it’s no wonder objects from the Galloway Hoard needed some serious work before going on display. Bethan Bryan talks through the complex process of conserving a silver brooch, from mending “mini-volcanoes” of copper erosion to using porcupine quills and algae-derived...Bryan, Bethan
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Abstract
Encounters and transformations beyond Roman borders: an-integrated paleoenvironmental, archaeological and historical approach which will explore the unconquered societies living beyond the northern most Roman frontier and their encounters with Rome
It is well known that the Roman Empire expanded as far north as the Highlands of Scotland between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD before retreating to a series of frontiers in modern day central Scotland and northern England. Major changes to the everyday activities of locals and to the... -
Book
High Pasture Cave: ritual, memory and identity in the Iron Age of Skye
High Pasture Cave, located on the island of Skye, Scotland, occupies a liminal location on the very edge of a settlement, and appears to have been a focus for specific and special activities. Its extended period of use is indicated by ephemeral signs of Neolithic Activity, limited Bronze Age usage,...Birch, Steven A ; Cruickshanks, Gemma ; Mackenzie, Jo T
High Pasture Cave, archaeological excavations, Iron Age Scotland, and Isle of Skye
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Research report
‘Collecting the New Past: developing representative collections of the present for the future’ National Museums Scotland National Training Programme Report for Contemporary Collecting Symposium, 21 November 2022
This report outlines the discussion and outcomes of the contemporary collecting symposium held by National Museums Scotland in November 2022. The symposium covered three key themes: how contemporary objects represent current issues in Scotland and contribute to expanding representation in museum collections; collecting with communities; and care of short-lifespan material....Vullinghs, Georgia
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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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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... -
Blog post
Riddle me a creepie and a cruik: Scots words for household objects
Many of our objects speak to the rich heritage of the Scots language. Whether you came to see our ‘flauchters’ or were ‘conflummixt’ by our collection of ‘creepies’ or ‘crusies’, many of these object names have a beguiling origin and unexpected uses far removed from their original purpose. In this...Taylor, Oliver
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Blog post
Entangled Knowledges: Sharing collections in Albany
Since 2021 Ali and Andrew have been participating in a project which aims to highlight Menang Nyungar knowledge embedded in a historical collection of fishes and cultural objects and return this knowledge to the Menang community in Western Australia. Here they tell us about this collection, their recent visit to...Clark, Ali ; Kitchener, Andrew C
Research, Collections , Fish , and Colonial Histories And Legacies
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Journal article
Collecting stories
Dr John Giblin introduces a brand new gallery at National Museum of Scotland, which delves into how the items collected by the museum have come together over the past two centuries.Giblin, John
Arctic life, The Tytler collection, Lady John Scott, Imperial war art, museum, scientific instruments, Collecting stories, Treasure Trove, and Scotland
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Blog post
Period products for a 21st century Scotland
Tampons, pads, and menstrual cups are everyday objects used by many though rarely considered noteworthy. But what can a group of period products say about the social and environmental concerns of Scotland today? Georgia Vullinghs, Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary History, discusses some recent acquisitions relating to the campaign...Vullinghs, Georgia
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Book chapter
Lithics
Evidence for earlier prehistoric activity in the vicinity of Iron Age settlements is common in the north-east region, and the sites of Morley Hill and Lower Callerton are no exceptions. Pre-Iron Age activity tends to be scattered and smaller in scale, often appearing as a series of discrete pits, only...Anderson-Whymark, Hugo
Lithics, Mesolithic , Lower Callerton, Morley Hill , Bronze Age, Neolithic, and earlier prehistory
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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
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Book chapter
The Matter of Slavery at National Museums Scotland
In the ‘Industry and Empire’ gallery of the National Museum of Scotland (NMS) in Edinburgh sits a gleaming cup of white porcelain, resting on its saucer. Text rendered in black lettering around the body of the cup reads: ‘and so it was that those long sea/journeys became yonder awa awa’....Laurenson, Sarah
Colonial Histories and Legacies, Slavery, Scotland, and Industry and Empire
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Video
Museum Role Call: Ian Brown
MUSEUM ROLE CALL! In our new monthly series, get to know people from across our museums, the spaces they work in and the objects they are inspired by. In our first episode, we surprised Ian Brown (Assistant Curator - Aviation) in the object stores. Join us as we follow him...National Museums Scotland
East Fortune , curation, object store, collection and interpretation of objects, National Museum of Flight, and Aviation
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Magazine article
'Alice Balfour' In: Herstory - women who changed the world
To mark Women's History Month, female curators at National Museums Scotland have each selected an inspiration woman represented in the collection. From entomologist to artist to queen, their legacy lives on.Whiffin, Ashleigh
Alice Blanche Balfour (1850-1936), Whittingehame, Entomology, and Women's History Month