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Blog post
Time travelling at National Museums Scotland
As the clocks change back to Greenwich Mean Time and days shorten towards Winter Solstice, the sensation of passing time seems more acute than ever. A few days ago I visited our National Museums Collection Centre at Granton in North Edinburgh where time's disorientating effects are set out in concrete...Breward, Christopher
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Blog post
Conservation and conversation: What can a National Museum do about a global emergency?
The global environmental emergency – not only the climate crisis but also large-scale biodiversity loss – is the biggest challenge facing the world. With COP26 just days away, our Director, Chris Breward, reflects on the role we have to play, from understanding the past to improving our future.Breward, Christopher
Climate , Climate Change, Museums , and Sustainability
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Blog post
‘Woman’s dress of dark blue cotton, Ukraine, c.1880’: the complex reality behind a simple description
Alongside the human cost of conflict, the nihilistic destruction of centuries of historic heritage in Ukraine has provoked alarm, outrage and offers of support across the international museum sector. At the outset of hostilities, we looked to provide practical support where we could. For example, in the supply of wooden...Breward, Christopher
Dress , Russia , Ukraine, Embroidery , and Textiles
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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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Blog post
Eyes that see in the dark: nocturnal dinosaurs
With new fossils being discovered, new information about dinosaurs comes to light all the time. Just today, a study reveals evidence of dinosaurs adapted to hunt in the dark. Stig Walsh, an author on this study, illuminates further.Breward, Christopher
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Journal article
Reaching Further with Earth Science Data
Earth Sciences cover a broad spectrum of research fields such as petrology, sedimentology, structural geology, seismology, and geomorphology, to name a few, which aim to understand interrelated processes on the surface and in the interior of our planet. Many of the research questions studied in the Earth sciences, such as,...Walcott, Rachel ; Lehnert, Kerstin
geology, mineralogy, geochemistry, Mineral Extension for Darwin Core, and soil science
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Lecture
Mineralogy of the Mobile phone
Did you know that mobile phones use over fifty different chemical elements to work? Where do these come from and how are they used?Walcott, Rachel
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Journal article
A revision of the ‘coelophysoid-grade’ theropod specimen from the Lower Jurassic of the Isle of Skye (Scotland )
The broadest diversification of early predatory dinosaurs is represented by the ‘coelophysoid-grade’ neotheropods, but their Hettangian–Sinemurian ( 191–201 Ma) record is scarce worldwide. More information is needed to shed light on the evolution of this dinosaur group after the end-Triassic mass extinction ( 201 Ma). Here we revisit the anatomy...Ezcurra, Martín D ; Marke, Daniel ; Walsh, Stig A ; Brusatte, Stephen L
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Journal article
Integrative taxonomy reveals unrecognised species diversity in African Corypha larks (Aves: Alaudidae)
The species complex comprising the rufous-naped lark Corypha africana, Sharpe’s lark Corypha sharpii, the red-winged lark Corypha hypermetra, the Somali long-billed lark Corypha somalica and Ash’s lark Corypha ashi encompasses 31 recognised taxa across sub-Saharan Africa, many of which are extremely poorly known and some not observed for decades. Only...Alström, Per ; Mohammadi, Zeinolabedin ; Donald, Paul F ; Nymark, Marianne ; Enbody, Erik D …
behaviour, morphometrics, Africa, bird, and new classification
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Journal article
How genomic insights into the evolutionary history of clouded leopards inform their conservation
Clouded leopards ( spp.), a morphologically and ecologically distinct lineage of big cats, are severely threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation, targeted hunting, and other human activities. The long-held poor understanding of their genetics and evolution has undermined the effectiveness of conservation actions. Here, we report a comprehensive investigation of...Yuan, Jiaqing ; Wang, Guiqiang ; Zhao, Le ; Kitchener, Andrew C ; Sun, Ting …
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Journal article
Genetic swamping of the critically endangered Scottish wildcat was recent and accelerated by disease
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Journal article
Skull morphology of bottlenose dolphins worldwide and patterns of adaptation between coastal and offshore environments
The morphological differentiation between coastal and offshore ecotypes of bottlenose dolphins (genus ) has been researched since the 1960s, particularly in (Montagu, 1821), although most morphological studies have focused on localized populations. Therefore, it is unclear how patterns observed in these individual populations integrate within the global morphological variation. Here...Oxford‐Smith, N ; Ruta, M ; Gao, A ; Viaud‐Martinez, K A ; Sabin, R …
ecotype , dolphin , offshore , adaptation , biogeography , Tursiops truncatus, coastal , and skull morphology
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Journal article
Albinism in the common shrew Sorex araneus
Albinism is a hypopigmentation disorder which occurs as a consequence of mutations in genes involved in melanin biosynthesis. It is recorded in many mammalian species but is generally considered to be rare in natural populations. Here, we describe a fully albino individual of the common shrew found in south-western Poland....Wójcik, Jan M ; Kowalczyk, Rafał ; Rybiałek, Jerzy ; Herman, Jeremy
Fur colouration , Albino , Shrews, Pelage , and Soricidae
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Journal article
Hwiccewyrm trispiculum gen. et sp. nov., a new leptopleuronine procolophonid from the Late Triassic of southwest England
The fissure fill localities of southwest England and South Wales are well‐known for preserving rich assemblages of predominantly small‐bodied Late Triassic to Early Jurassic tetrapods, but many aspects of these assemblages remain contentious. The age of the Late Triassic fissures is disputed, with some lines of argument suggesting a latest...Butler, Richard J ; Meade, Luke E ; Cleary, Terri J ; McWhirter, Kai T ; Brown, Emily E …
Procolophonidae , phylogeny , Parareptilia , fissure fills , and Triassic
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Journal article
A new species of Lygistorrhina (Lygistorrhina) Skuse, 1890 (Diptera: Keroplatidae, Lygistorrhininae) with a key to the subgenus
A new species of Lygistorrhina (Lygistorrhina) Skuse, 1890, Lygistorrhina woodi sp. nov., is described. The specimen was dissected from an alcohol-preserved flower of Ceropegia aristolochioides ssp. deflersiana Bruyns (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae, Ceropegieae) stored in the Kew herbarium. This is the first occurrence of the lygistorrhine gnats in a hot, semi-arid climate....Blagoderov, Vladimir ; Ollerton, Jeff ; Whittington, Andrew
Fungus gnats , Taxonomy , Apocynaceae, Biodiversity, Ceropegia, New taxa , Diptera, and Afrotropical region
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Lecture
Fair Isle Knitting: origins and authenticity
Curated by Philip Fimmano as part of New York Textile Month, this special online conference brings together speakers from around the globe, continuing our dedication to textile creativity and education by offering this exciting programme free to all students and teaching faculty.Wyld, Helen
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Lecture
Collecting and Curating Southeast Asian Art: In Conversation
This conversation between the two curators, Alexandra Green and Rosanna Nicolson, celebrates two exhibitions focusing on Southeast Asian art–“Burma to Myanmar” and “Theravada Buddhism”–concurrently showing at The British Museum and at National Museums of Scotland respectively. It highlights issues related to the formation of Asian art collections in the UK,... -
Conference paper (unpublished)
'Noble Ones': Reconsidering the role of terminology in the presentation of “mummies”
Maitland, Margaret
teminology, Ancient Egypt, conference paper, and mummified person
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Journal article
Fair Isle Knitwear
Fair Isle knitwear with its brightly-coloured geometric patterns, is known across the world today. The style has had various fashion flashpoints over the last two centuries, not least in the 1920s when the Prince of Wales, the future Edward VIII, was photographed looking very dapper wearing Fair Isle sweaters. It...Wyld, Helen ; Laurenson, Sarah
research , craft, textiles, Fair Isle knitwear , knitting, and National Museums Scotland collections
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Journal article
The Power of Glass: Craft Scotland Conference, 2022
In 2022, the UN marked the International Year of Glass, celebrating the essential role glass has, and will continue to have, in society. One element of this celebration was the importance of glass within art and its history, which the Craft Scotland 2022 Conference: The Power of Glass looked to... -
Book
Dyes in History and Archaeology 41
This Special Issue features contributions from the conference DHA41. Dyes in History and Archaeology (DHA) is an annual international conference that focuses on the academic discussion of dyes and organic pigments which have been used in the past. Every year since 1982, this meeting has drawn together conservators; curators; (technical)...Sandström, Edith
contributions, conference , organic colorants, Dyes in History and Archaeology, and conservation
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Journal article
Two Sculptures, One Master? A Technical Study of Two Rare Examples of Polychrome Sculptures Associated with “the Master of Saint Catherine of Gualino”, Italy, Fourteenth Century
Between the 1960s and 1990s art historian Giovanni Previtali identified a group of polychrome wood trecento sculptures from the Umbrian-Abruzzo region of Italy as the work of one hand. He named his artist the Maestro della Santa Caterina Gualino after one of the pieces considered to epitomize the style he... -
Presentation
The lives and afterlives of labels: Reconstructing historical labelling practices at the National Museum of Scotland
Despite their ubiquity and position as crucial components within the history of modern museum display, exhibition labels have received relatively little attention within the scope of the history of museums. Their absence from that scholarship parallels their absence in contemporary museum collections and archives: while museums once routinely catalogued copies...Boswell, Katie
exhibition label archive, Science and Technology, history of museums, exhibition labels, and marginalia
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Journal article
The Cold War in European museums – filling the ‘empty battlefield’
Recent historical research has analysed the Cold War as an ‘imaginary war’, an interpretation that poses specific challenges for displaying the conflict in museums. In contrast to well-established representations of the First and Second World Wars in exhibitions, we find that the nature of the Cold War in Europe and...Alberti, Samuel J M M ; Nehring, Holger
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Book chapter
'Later prehistoric finds' In: Ewart, Gordon and Gallagher, Dennis, With thy towers high: The archaeology of Stirling Castle and Palace
Two characteristically pre-medieval small finds were found in the same post-medieval deposit, a dark-brown silty clay deposit at the noprth end of the Ladies' Lookout (VVI/F21176).Hunter, Fraser
Scotland, prehistoric pottery, post-medieval small finds, Stirling Castle, shale bangle, and excavations
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Book chapter
'Coins and jetons' In: Ewart, Gordon and Gallagher, Dennis, With thy towers high: The archaeology of Stirling Castle and Palace
The combined assemblage of numismatic finds totalled 30 items, comprising six medieval silver coins, ten base metal coins dating from the period from the late 15th to the late 17th century, three jetons (reckoning counters) and eleven modern coins (18th to 20th century), which are recorded only in the excavation...Homes, Nicholas
coins, excavations, jetons, Stirling Castle, assemblage, and numismatic finds
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Journal article
Exhibition Review: Tales in Gaelic (Temporary exhibition - Sgeul/Story: Folk Tales from the Scottish Highlands, National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh)
Bruce Blacklaw finds folklore and beauty in this celebration of the Gaelic languageBlacklaw, Bruce
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Journal article
The mitochondrial DNA diversity of captive ruffed lemurs (Varecia spp.): implications for conservation
Ruffed lemurs ( and ) are categorized as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and genetic studies are needed for assessing the conservation value of captive populations. Using 280 mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D-loop sequences, we studied the genetic diversity and structure of captive ruffed lemurs in Madagascar, Europe and...Vega, Rodrigo ; Hopper, Jane ; Kitchener, Andrew C ; Catinaud, Jérôme ; Roullet, Delphine …
Biodiversity, diversity, Lemuridae, genetic, primates, conservation, and Madagascar
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Presentation
Did the Vikings exist?
We can all picture a Viking. But the Vikings that archaeologists dig up look rather different. Those Vikings adopted fashions from wherever they settled, and even changed religions when needed. They traded and married as much as they raided and harried. Their ships carried men, women, children and even pets....Maldonado, Adrián
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Abstract
The long, strange journey of Viking-age ringed pins
Ringed pins are the calling card of the Viking Age in Britain and Ireland: small, low-value metal cloak fasteners, found in dressed burials, and frequently encountered as stray finds. They have a complex trajectory, beginning as Irish dress items in the pre-Viking period. From the middle of the ninth century,...Maldonado, Adrián
death rituals, Viking Age in Britain and Ireland, burials, ringed pins, Hiberno-Norse, and cloak fasteners
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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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Lecture
Beyond Picts and Vikings: Northern mainland Scotland 800-1100
Adrian Maldonado speaking about the artefacts and carved stones from the end of the Pictish period and Viking Age in the northern mainland. This is a re-recording of a talk given person at Strathpeffer on 28th October 2023 for NOSAS's 25th anniversary celebrations.Maldonado, Adrián
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Book
Crucible of nations: Scotland from Viking Age to Medieval Kingdom
This third book from The Glenmorangie Company Research Project, following Early Medieval Scotland and Scotland’s Early Silver, will also appeal to readers of The Galloway Hoard. It takes a new look at National Museums Scotland collections covering the period 800-1200: the fall of the Pictish kingdoms and rise of the...Maldonado, Adrián
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Poster (unpublished)
National Museums Scotland’s 17th-century warship assemblages
Paul, Ella
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Journal article
Revealing observatory networks through object stories: Introduction
This paper introduces a group of three articles that bring together object stories relating to observatory history and networks. The three articles (‘Instrumental networks’, ‘Object itineraries’ and ‘Observatory audiences’) each bring together three object stories by different authors that contribute to the article theme. Here the genesis of the collection...Higgitt, Rebekah
object stories, observatory sites, astronomy, networks, collections, object biography, scientific instruments, object itineraries, Time, observatory sciences, and observatories
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Journal article
Revealing observatory networks through object stories: Observatory audiences
Like the contributions to the other papers in this collection (‘Object itineraries’ and ‘Instrumental networks’), those in this final section explore instrumental networks and object itineraries in order to tell new histories of observatory sites and their associated networks. (For a discussion of the genesis and thinking behind the collection... -
Conference paper (unpublished)
Geology to Jewellery: sourcing and crafting Scottish metals and gems in the nineteenth century
From the late eighteenth century, jewellers in Scotland used precious metals and colourful stone to craft little luxuries that were bought, gifted and worn by men, women and children. This talk will explore how jewellers and lapidaries responded and contributed to developing knowledge about geology and mineralogy through the things...Laurenson, Sarah
material culture, geology , lapidaries, 18th century , agates, Cairngorm mountains, mineralogy, Scotland, jewellery, and quartz
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Abstract
Fragmented metalwork hoards as a selective practice in Late Bronze Age north-western Europe
Hoards of fragmented metalwork are often seen as one of the defining practices of Late Bronze Age communities in Europe. Such hoards have attracted much attention with debates around how and why metalwork was broken and buried. Were hoards abandoned scrap? Or was there a ritual aspect? Although it is...Knight, Matthew G
Europe, communities , Hoards, Late Bronze Age , and fragmented metalwork
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Characterising the late medieval brooch in Scotland: What, Where, When and Why?
Prosser , Lydia
Medieval Scottish , ornament, dress, and late medieval brooch