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The British Museum
What is African rock art?
How much space do 25,000 objects take up in the British Museum? Roughly 4 terabytes. Elizabeth Galvin is curator of the African rock art image project at the British Museum. Elizabeth and her team are currently cataloguing and uploading...
The British Museum
Conservation of a crocodile mummy
Take an in-depth look at the conservation processes involved in getting a crocodile mummy ready for display for the first time in 75 years. You can see this mummy in Room 3 until 21 Feb 2016: The Asahi Shimbun Displays Scanning Sobek:...
The British Museum
George the Poet – The Benin bronze
George the Poet performs a spoken-word poem about an African work of art – a Benin bronze plaque – in the British Museum's Africa Gallery. George has taken up our Huge History Lesson challenge to investigate and get inspired by a museum...
The British Museum
Deciphering the world's oldest rule book | Irving Finkel | Curator's Corner pilot
Irving Finkel has possibly the coolest job in the world – he’s curator of cuneiform at the British Museum! Since 1979 he’s been trawling the Museum’s 130,000 clay tablets for clues about life in ancient Mesopotamia. In this film, he...
The British Museum
Islamic arts in Egypt: script and lustreware
Venetia Porter, curator of Islamic Collections at the BM shows us a beautiful carved inscription from a cenotaph. The panel gives the beginning of the basmala, the name for the Arabic phrase ‘In the name of God the merciful and the...
The British Museum
A scholarly revelation: the Gospel of Mary
Fragments from the past can transform our reading of history. Christians adopted the Greek translation of Jewish scriptures (Septuagint) as their Old Testament, and in time, their compilation of gospels, letters and other works formed...
The British Museum
Translating Jewish scriptures into Greek
Jews had a long history in Egypt. They settled throughout Egypt, especially in the city of Alexandria, where they generally thrived under the Greek-speaking Ptolemaic dynasty (305-30 BC). Dr Roberta Mazza, Research Fellow of the John...
The British Museum
Making a traditional Chinese hanging scroll
Senior Conservator Mrs Jin Xian Qiu has spent the last 43 years mastering the traditional Chinese method of mounting a hanging scroll. Watch as she prepares and hangs two works by Chinese artist Qu Leilei – a process that takes a whole...
The British Museum
Living with gods: water serpents
Dragons, snakes and serpents appear connected with water across world belief and mythology. Professor Veronica Strang, Durham University, discusses the importance and prevalence of these beasts. Living with gods: peoples, places and...
The British Museum
Print making: lithography
Laura Bianchi, MA student of Printmaking at Camberwell College of Arts, UAL, demonstrates the techniques of lithography – using carborundum, oil, water and ink – and discusses how the painterly aspect of the process suits her artistic...
The British Museum
The palace decoration of Ashurbanipal
Ashurbanipal wasn't just an Assyrian king, he was a propaganda king. The layout, decorations and even the landscaping of his palaces were all made to point to one major fact - he was more powerful than you. WARNING: includes scenes of...
The British Museum
Conserving a Japanese hanging scroll painting | A courtesan by Kitagawa Utamaro
The conservation and re-mounting of Kitagawa Utamaro’s hanging scroll, “Standing Courtesan Reading a Letter” and its silk mount (BM 2014,3048.1), was completed at the British Museum Hirayama studio in November 2016 thanks to generous...
The British Museum
Conservation of a Romano-British urn | Episode 8: Mould making and resin casting
Episode eight in a weekly series that tracks the in-depth conservation work on a Romano-British cinerary urn. Watch previous episodes in the series -'https://goo.gl/U851ra' target='_blank' rel='nofollow'>series - Cinerary urns were...
The British Museum
Titokowaru’s dilemma: an interview with Marian Maguire
New Zealand artist Marian Maguire discusses the inspirations for her lithographic series ‘Titokowaru’s dilemma’. Marian uses the instantly recognisable silhouettes of ancient Greek red-and-black figure pottery, decorating them with Māori...
The British Museum
On this day in history: The marriage of Frederick II and Isabella
Political marriages have
The British Museum
A taste for rioting: Christians in Alexandria
The Alexandrians loved a good quarrel, according to Tom Holland, historian and author of ‘Dynasty’ and ‘In the Shadow of the Sword’. According to Philo of Alexandria, Alexandrian women would grab the testicles of any man they disagreed...
The British Museum
How to use an astrolabe I Curator's Corner season 3 episode 1
Curator William Greenwood talks us through the different parts of an astrolabe and how to use it. To find out more read William's blog about astrolabes hereref='https://goo.gl/JGd75z' target='_blank' rel='nofollow'>here...
The British Museum
Print making: polymer plate
MA student of printmaking Ines Fernandez de Cordova shows a less traditional printmaking technique that uses photo-sensitive polymers to create a plate to be etched in acid. The American Dream: pop to the present 9 March – 18 June 2017...
The British Museum
Flavours of Babylon
Museum chefs cook ancient Babylonian recipes to create some authentic Mesopotamian dishes.='http://www.britishmuseum.org/about_this_site/audio_and_video/exhibitions_-_archive/babylon_-_video_archive.aspx' target='_blank'...
The British Museum
Virtual autopsy: exploring a natural mummy from early Egypt
The life and death of Gebelein Man Found in around 1896, the mummy known as Gebelein man was buried in about 3500 BC at the site of Gebelein in Upper Egypt. He has been in the British Museum collection for over 100 years, but it was not...
The British Museum
Scythians: scientific analysis of the Oxus treasure
British Museum Scientist Aude Mongiatti shares some of her research on the Oxus treasure, a selection of beautiful gold and silver objects from the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Some of the objects from the Oxus treasure are on display in...
The British Museum
Scythians: drink and drugs in ancient Siberia
Alongside their reputation as fierce warriors the Scythians were known for drinking wine and fermented mares' milk, and howling with pleasure at the effects of hemp... The BP exhibition Scythians: warriors of ancient Siberia 14 September...
The British Museum
Scythians: the alternative lifestyle of antiquity
Curator St John Simpson explains how the nomadic Scythians may not have lived in cities, but they still had the skill and desire to live the good life. The BP exhibition Scythians: warriors of ancient Siberia 14 September 2017 – 14...
The British Museum
Scythians: tattooed people of the Siberian steppe
Curator St John Simpson describes the fascinating and intricate tattoos found on Scythian bodies. The BP exhibition Scythians: warriors of ancient Siberia 14 September 2017 – 14 January 2018 #Scythians To find out more and book tickets...