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Book chapter
Tupaia and the Heva Tupapa'u: voyages past, present and future
Centring priest and navigator Tupaia and Pacific worldviews, this richly illustrated volume weaves a new set of cultural histories in the Pacific, between local islanders and the crew of the Endeavour on James Cook's first 'voyage of discovery' (1768-1771). Contributors consider material collections brought back from the voyage, paying particular...Reynolds, Pauline ; Adams, Julie
Pacific, anthropology, and encounters
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Book chapter
Interpersonal violence in the Late Pleistocene: a comprehensive reanalysis of the Nile Valley cemetery of Jebel Sahaba
The Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene period are punctuated by major climatic changes whose effects on human populations remain poorly understood. In the Nile Valley, possible refuge areas during the periods of high climatic constraints, hyper-arid environmental conditions are documented until the onset of the Holocene. Dated to the terminal...Crevecoeur, Isabelle ; Dias-Meirinho, Marie-Hélène ; Zazzo, Antoine ; Antoine, Daniel ; Bon, Francis
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Book chapter
Sampling inorganic materials for chemical (elemental and isotopic) analysis
This Handbook aims to help bridge this gap in the daily practice of archaeological fieldwork and lab-based researchDegryse, Patrick ; Rademakers, Frederik
inorganic materials, isotope analysis, and archaeological science
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Journal article
Preliminary investigation of the chaîne opératoire of Meroitic potsherds from the cemetery of Faras, northern Nubia (Sudan)
Handmade, black-burnished pottery had a significant presence in Meroitic contexts across Sudan, from Jebel Moya in central Sudan to Seyala in Lower Nubia, suggesting the production and exchange of handmade vessels was a key industry in the Meroitic kingdom. The macroscopic identification of examples with no discernible organic temper, in...Kilroe, Loretta ; Spataro, Michela
Meroitic ceramics, polarised light microscopy, and chaîne opératoire
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Journal article
Giants of the sands: the giraffe and its place in symbolic vocabulary in the Kingdom of Kush, Sudan
The image of a giraffe was added to both wheelmade and handmade pottery, faience plaques, temple walls and rock art in the Meroitic period of the Kingdom of Kush ( 570 – 550), located in modern-day Sudan. However, giraffes do not appear in contemporary royal and elite art and architecture....Kilroe, Loretta
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Book
The Assyrian Rock Relief at Yaǧmur (Evrihan) in the Tur Abdin
The Assyrian Rock Relief at Yaǧmur in the Tur Abdin publishes a newly discovered rock relief in the Mazıdağı Plain, at the western end of the Tur Abdin in southeastern Turkey. The preserved remains include an image of an Assyrian king, divine symbols and traces of three panels of cuneiform...Bülent, Genç ; John, MacGinnis
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Journal article
From Jemdet Nasr origins to an early Muslim town in the wetlands: second preliminary report on excavations at Kobeba (Dhi Qar governorate), southern Iraq
In 2022, targeted excavations were carried out as part of a study season at the site of Kobeba, near the town of al-Rifa’i, in Dhi Qar governorate, southern Iraq. The results were very successful and clarified a number of outstanding questions over the dating and phasing. One sounding has confirmed...Simpson, St John
Kobeba and Jemdet Nasr
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Book
Late Hokusai: Society, Thought, Technique, Legacy
This publication has been developed from ideas first presented at the international symposium Late Hokusai: Thought, Technique, Society, held at the British Museum in May 2017. The symposium was organised to enable specialists in a range of disciplines relating to early modern Japan to view and consider the critically acclaimed...Clark, Timothy
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Book
Greek and Roman Medicine at the British Museum: The Instruments and Accoutrements of Ancient Medicine
Greek and Roman Medicine at the British Museum is an authoritative and up-to-date study of Greek and Roman medicine and surgery. This book is the first full, and fully illustrated, publication of the Museum’s important collection. Strategies for the preservation of health and for the prevention and treatment of illness...Jackson, Ralph
History of collecting, History of medicine, and Classical world
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Journal article
Successes and challenges in laser cleaning metal artefacts: A review
Over the past fifty years, laser cleaning has progressively become an established conservation cleaning treatment for a range of artefacts, including stone, ceramics and paintings. While its application to metal is not widespread, there have been several reports of laser cleaning on metal artefacts. However, the findings of these studies...Bertasa, Moira ; Korenberg, Capucine
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Other
British Museum Studies in Ancient Egypt and Sudan (BMSAES) Issue 26
The transfer of wall paintings from their original locations has been practised since antiquity. Many art collections contain wall paintings which were historically detached and rebacked. Such transfer is now rarely undertaken, and only under very specific circumstances. This extensive article is specifically concerned with the transfer of ancient Egyptian...British Museum
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Book
A Collector's Life: William Burrell
In 1944, Glasgow received one of the greatest gifts ever made to any city in the world: a collection of over 6,000 artworks of many types spanning centuries and civilisations. The benefactors were Glasgow-born shipping magnate Sir William Burrell and Constance, Lady Burrell. Burrell’s success in business allowed him to...Bellamy, Martin ; MacDonald, Isobel
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Journal article
There’s more to a vessel than meets the eye: Organic residue analysis of ‘wine’ containers from shipwrecks and settlements of ancient Cyprus (4th–1st century )
Despite growing evidence to the contrary, wine remains the assumed content of many types of ancient pottery. Vessels from the Kyrenia and Mazotos shipwrecks, and Yeronisos island presumed to have contained wine were subjected to three different extraction protocols to test the assumption that these vessels were used to import... -
Journal article
Technical steps towards enhanced localization of proteins in cultural heritage samples by immunofluorescence microscopy and micro-reflectance imaging spectroscopy
This study presents the results obtained during the optimization phase of a protocol based on immunofluorescence microscopy (IFM) with the aim to characterize and localize proteins in fluid-rich samples of cultural heritage interest. Chicken serum albumin from chicken blood was considered the primary target. Ovalbumin from chicken egg albumen (egg... -
Journal article
Putting the pieces back together: Rembrandt's Lamentation drawing under the microscope
A thorough examination of Rembrandt’s early drawing of the Lamentation at the Foot of the Cross in the British Museum (Benesch 154; registration number Oo,9.103) using magnification (x10), transmitted light, infrared imaging and Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI), in order to conclusively establish the construction of the paper and the different...Horbatsch, Olenka ; Snow, Rebecca ; Taylor, Samantha
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Book chapter
The small finds
Part of a multi-author chapter discussing late and post-medieval finds from excavations on the island of Kinolhas, illustrating links with South Asia, the Middle East and East Africa, and illustrating the importance of the Maldives within Indian Ocean networks.Abe, Yoshinari ; Dussubieux, Laure ; Wood, Marilee ; Haour, Anne ; Simpson, St John
archaeology, Indian Ocean, and Maldives
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Book
Egypt and Empire: The Formation of Religious Identity after Rome
Across Eurasia and North Africa in the First Millennium AD, empires rose and fell, each adopting a universalizing faith which distinguished it broadly from its neighbours. In Egypt, our sources are particularly rich, owing to the land's arid climate and the unparalleled survival not only of stone, ceramic and metalwork,...O'Connell, Elisabeth R.
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Journal article
A non-invasive investigation of Egyptian faience using Long Wavelength Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) at 2 μm
Egyptian faience is a non-clay ceramic semi-transparent material formed of a quartz core and alkali-lime glaze. Previous investigations have identified production techniques by using microstructure images obtained from invasive methods. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive 3D imaging technique that produces virtual cross-sections of transparent and semi-transparent materials. A...Read, Margaret ; Cheung, C. S. ; Liang, Haida ; Meek, Andrew ; Korenberg, Capucine
Egyptian faience, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and microstructure
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Book chapter
David Williams' treasures and the role of the Finds Liaison Officer in the treasure process
The Treasure Act 1996 makes it a legal requirement for finds of gold and silver objects, coin and prehistoric base-metal hoards to be reported to the Coroner. Its purpose is to enable museums to acquire these finds for public benefit. In practice the administration of cases reported under this law...Richardson, Ian
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Book
Down to Earth Archaeology
Professor William Y. Adams presents sixteen papers on Nubia, written at various times during his lengthy and productive academic career. Most of those selected had been previously published only in a limited way; encompassing a wide range of topics, Adams wanted to enable them to reach a wider readership than...Adams, William Y. ; Anderson, Julie R.
archaeology and Nubia
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Book
Chinese Numismatics: The World of Chinese Money
This is the first book to explore the history of the field of Chinese numismatics from both Eastern and Western perspectives. Consisting of four papers that complement each other beautifully, it gives a sound introduction to the study of Chinese numismatics, focusing on the 19th century and, crucially, how to...Wang, Helen ; Thierry, Francois ; Jankowski, Lyce
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Book chapter
A licence to conserve: cultural diversity as a practical asset in conservation
This paper, co-authored by conservators from the Hirayama Studio at the British Museum, discusses whether staff at a Western institution have the right and appropriate qualifications to conserve objects from different cultures. What is appropriate in conserving culturally diverse material? Do we at the British Museum, on the one hand, risk...Weiss, Carol ; Qiu, Jin Xian ; Kim-Marandet, Meejung ; Kosek, Joanna ; Kusunoki, Kyoko …
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Journal article
Re-membering Osiris: Late Period casting moulds and Osirian ritual
In 1969, a unique set of Late Period bronze casting moulds was discovered at the Qubbet el-Hawa necropolis illustrating the chaîne opératoire of the lost-wax technique. Usually only mould fragments, if anything at all, remain in the archaeological record, but this assemblage presents complete examples representative of different phases of...Verly, Georges ; Auenmüller, Johannes ; Delvaux, Luc ; W. Rademakers, Frederik
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Book chapter
Hoarding in Roman Britain: an archaeological and contextual approach
An overview of the approach and results of the British Museum / Leicester University AHRC funded project studying Iron Age and Roman hoards from Britain.Ghey, Eleanor
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Journal article
The bad side of recycling: the use of ancient coins as a source of material for modern forgeries
A group of six coins from Ithaca in the British Museum collection has been analysed using a bench Bruker Artax X-ray fluorescence spectrometer on a polished surface. The coins can be stylistically divided into two variants. The analysis highlighted that the two variants are chemically different, with one suspected of...Perucchetti, Laura ; Dowler, Amelia
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Journal article
Counting when, who and how: visualizing the British Museum’s history of acquisition through collection data, 1753–2019
This paper critically examines the possibilities of using the British Museum’s collection database as a research tool to examine acquisition history. It publishes initial findings from the author’s research into the history of the collection through a quantitative analysis of collection data. Rather than focusing on individual collectors, collections or...MacDonald, Isobel
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Book chapter
Gandhāra in the news: rediscovering Gandhāra in The Times and other media
Although I have had the pleasure to work alongside colleagues at the British Museum whose research has focused on Gandhāra, my own research has been more peripheral: for example, on East Asia and collection history. For the ‘Rediscovery and Reception of Gandhāran Art’ workshop, I suggested looking at Gandhāra through...Wang, Helen
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Journal article
Metal-detecting rallies: characterizing the phenomenon, understanding the challenges, and identifying strategies for heritage protection
Hobby metal detectorists search for archaeological finds as individuals and within groups, the latter being the focus of this article. Such groups come together as “clubs” and “meetings,” but also as part of large, often commercially run events typically known as “rallies.” All these activities are attractive to detectorists because...Wessman, Anna ; Deckers, Pieterjan ; Lewis, Michael ; Thomas, Suzie ; Nolet, Katelijne
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Journal article
The first preliminary report of the Khirbat Umm al-Ghuzlān Excavation Project: investigating an EB IV olive processing site in north Jordan
The evidence from Khirbat Umm al-Ghuzlān suggests that this enclosure site served a specialised economic purpose in the Early Bronze Age (EB) IV (ca 26/2500-2000BC). Given the site’s location, it is likely that it was used as a processing centre for upland horticultural crops such as olive, which grow better...Fraser, James ; Cartwright, Caroline ; Zoubi, N. ; Carr, A. ; Handziuk, N. …
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Journal article
Coherent changes in wood charcoals, site occupation and lithic technology across the MIS 4/3 transition at Klein Kliphuis rock shelter, South Africa
We explore the correspondence between changing palaeoenvironments, patterns of site use, and lithic technology at the rock shelter site Klein Kliphuis (South Africa) across the interval 65–55 000 years before present. This period coincides with the termination of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4, and the disappearance of an iconic late...Mackay, Alex ; Cartwright, Caroline R.
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Journal article
‘A Very Curious Series of Paintings’: Marco Ricci’s Paintings on Leather
The 2017 Royal Collection Trust exhibition ‘Canaletto and the Art of Venice’ necessitated the examination and conservation treatment of eight paintings by the artist Marco Ricci (1676–1730). Marco’s artworks were unusually catalogued as ‘tempera on kidskin leather’, however it became apparent that internationally widespread confusion and inconsistency existed in the...Turner, Emma
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Journal article
Protecting Three-Dimensional Museum Collections During Transport: Engineering and Evaluation of Transport Crates Featuring Wire-Rope Isolators for Improved Vibration Mitigation
Shock and vibration generated during transport can lead to overload failure and fatigue fracture in museum objects. Damage can be prevented using transport packing providing both adequate shock absorption and vibration isolation. This research demonstrated that standardized packing with enhanced vibration mitigation is achievable for three-dimensional objects in a busy...Kotonski, Verena ; Kracht, Kerstin ; York, Evan ; Barton, Caroline
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Book chapter
Introduction (East and South East Asia)
Introduction to the East and South East Asian section of the International Numismatic Council Survey of Numismatic Research 2014-2020, vols 1&2.Wang, Helen
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Book
Hieroglyphs: unlocking ancient Egypt
Today the history of ancient Egypt is known around the world, recognizable in precious museum collections and countless retellings from popular culture. Yet for hundreds of years, from the late Roman Empire to the 19th century, the wonders of this ancient civilisation were frozen in time, locked in artefacts that...Regulski, Ilona
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Book chapter
Characterising transformation in religious material culture AD 1000-1700: through the study of archaeological finds discovered by the public in England and Wales
This paper puts forward an archaeological approach to examining changes in material culture, through time and across boundaries, here focusing on what might be termed (though maybe not very precisely) ‘religious objects’. Pilgrim ‘souvenirs’ are clearly important in this regard, not least because they travelled between places, and were owned...Lewis, Michael
medieval, religion, and material culture
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Book
Weapons in Late Shang (c.1250-1050 BCE) China Beyond Typology and Ritual
Weapons in Late Shang (c.1250-1050 BCE) China: Beyond Typology and Ritual explores the large quantities of bronze and jade weapons, such as dagger-axes, spears and arrows, found at the World Heritage site of Yinxu, the late Shang capital located near today’s Anyang city in central China. Qin Cao’s innovative research...Qin, Cao
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Book chapter
Money on the Silk Road – twenty years on
One of 28 papers in a Festschrift in honour of Georgina Herrmann, this paper outlines projects and publications relating to, and arising from, "Money on the Silk. The Evidence from Eastern Central Asia to c. AD 800, including a catalogue of the coins collected by Sir Aurel SteinWang, Helen
Silk Roads, Money, and Aurel Stein
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Journal article
Silk Road textiles on banknotes of the Central Asian Republics
Since independence in 1991, the Central Asian republics have used traditional textiles to construct their national identities and to strengthen their association with the famous Silk Roads. This national branding is exemplified by the designs used on modern banknotes, reflecting each nation’s priorities and preferred associations.Wang, Helen ; Sluka, Victoria
textiles, banknotes, and Central Asia
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Journal article
Igbo-Ukwu textiles: AMS dating and fiber analysis
Thurstan Shaw’s excavations at Igbo-Ukwu revealed many artifacts and technologies that remain astonishing, unique, and incompletely understood, both within Africa and more broadly, even after 50 years. Among these are the textiles recovered primarily from Igbo Isaiah, where fragments were preserved by contact with the bronze artifacts gathered in what...McIntosh, Susan Keech ; Cartwright, Caroline R.
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Journal article
A metallographic study of objects and fragments from the site of Igbo Isaiah, Igbo-Ukwu, Nigeria
This work presents a new analytical and metallographic examination of fragmentary objects and components from Igbo-Ukwu, eastern Nigeria dating to approximately the ninth to twelfth centuries AD. These objects are thought to be part of the early accidental discoveries within the compound of Isaiah Anozie, collected in 1939 by the...Wang, Quanyu ; Craddock, Paul ; Hudson, Julie
bronze, metallography, Igbo-Ukwu, metalworking, copper, and Nigeria
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Book
Translation and State: The Mahābhārata at the Mughal Court
In 1587, Abū al-Faz̤l ibn Mubārak – a favourite at the Mughal court and author of the Akbarnāmah – completed his Preface to the Persian translation of the Mahābhārata. This book is the first detailed study of Abū al-Faz̤l's Preface. It offers insights into manuscript practices at the Mughal court,...Willis, Michael
Sanskrit, Mahābhārata, translation, and Persian
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Journal article
Expanding space and time at Igbo-Ukwu: insights from recent fieldwork
We present the results of fieldwork conducted at Igbo-Ukwu in 2019 and 2021 aimed at expanding the temporal and spatial record of the ancient settlement. Local participation and public engagement are central to the project, which has yielded a new dataset that enhances our understanding of the archaeological and landscape...Daraojimba, Kingsley Chinedu ; Babalola, Abidemi Babatunde ; Brittain, Marcus ; Adeyemo, Elizabeth ; Champion, Louis …
stratigraphic excavation, ceramic, Igbo-Ukwu, and southeast Nigeria
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Journal article
An Iron Age coin hoard from Nursling, Hampshire
The article outlines the contents of an Iron Age coin hoard found in 2018 and discusses the significance of the coinage and the broader archaeological context of the find.Ghey, Eleanor ; Talbot, John
numismatics and Iron Age
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Journal article
Coin hoards from England, Scotland and Wales, 2022
Annual round up of coin hoards studied for the Treasure Act 1996Andrews, Murray ; Ghey, Eleanor
Iron Age, numismatics, and Roman