British Museum Research Publications

The Research Publications series publishes the results of research undertaken by Museum staff and associated researchers. These can be in the form of excavation reports, collection catalogues, monographs and conference proceedings. The aim of the series is to make the Museum's research as widely accessible as possible, with a number of books available for free download in pdf format. Originally called Occasional Papers, the series has been published since 1978 with over 200 books in print. Around six titles are published each year, and all are externally peer reviewed.

Now showing 1 - 10 of 10

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From Morocco to the Coast of England: The Story of the Dom van Keulen and its Remarkable Cargo
(2026)
Porter, Venetia
;
Parham, David
In 1995, remarkable contents of a 17th-century shipwreck began to be discovered by divers of the South West Maritime Archaeological Group off Salcombe Bay. The finds consist of over 400 gold coins of the Sa‘dian Sharifs of Morocco in addition to ingots, jewellery as well as other items including Dutch pewter and pottery subsequently acquired by the British Museum. Although the ship has not survived, the divers discovered remnants of wood, rope and lead that were parts of its infrastructure. The finds from this shipwreck are significant for several reasons: the gold is clearly a bullion hoard and the number of Sa‘dian coins within it offer new insights into the numismatic history of the period. In addition, examples of 16thâˆ’17th century Moroccan jewellery from this period rarely survive in datable contexts. Alongside these gold items are objects which provide a fascinating insight into everyday life on board ship, including personal possessions and the rare survival of resin-coated pills and faba beans. Whilst there was much debate at the time of discovery about the origin and identity of the ship, it became clear from analysis of the objects that a Dutch origin was the most likely. Research undertaken for this publication has now revealed the identity of the ship – the Dom van Keulen, a Dutch trading ship which is reported to have sunk off the coast of Salcombe in 1633. This multi-authored book therefore not only offers a detailed record of the find and the process of recovery, but provides important context for the history of the period: the fabulous wealth and architecture of the Sa ‘dian Sharifs, the trade in African gold as well as tangible evidence of a flourishing maritime trade in the 17th century, connecting Morocco, the Low Countries and Britain.
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The Berthier-Delagarde Collection of Crimean Jewellery in the BM and Related Material
(2008)
Andrà¡si, Jàºlia
The Berthier-Delagarde Collection is the most significant collection of Early Medieval jewellery from the Crimean region of the Ukraine in the West. The catalogue is important not only for the archaeology of the region, but also for the broader relationship of the finds to Anglo-Saxon, Frankish and German jewellery.
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The Heritage of ‘Maà®tre Alpais’: An International and Interdisciplinary Examination of Medieval Limoges Enamel and Associated Objects
(2010)
La Niece, Susan
;
Rà¶hrs, Stefan
;
McLeod, Bet
As part of an assessment of the Medieval collections at the British Museum in preparation for the new Medieval Europe gallery, attention was focused on the differences and similarities between the renowned ‘Alpais’ Limoges ciborium, dated to c. 1200, in the Musée du Louvre, an example in the British Museum, another in the National Museums of Scotland, and two electrotype copies of the ‘Alpais’ ciborium in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Taking as its central focus the ciborium in the British Museum, this volume uses a cross-disciplinary approach, based on the differing specializations of the authors (curators, scientists and conservators) to examine the group of ciboria. New and previously unpublished information, analyses and conclusions are presented that serve to locate all the ciboria in their respective artistic and cultural context.
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Greek and Roman Medicine at the British Museum: The Instruments and Accoutrements of Ancient Medicine
(2023)
Jackson, Ralph
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 and disease have been discerned in the surviving written records and materials remains of most societies since earliest times. Compared to the prehistoric past, the evidence for the ancient Greek and Roman periods is comparatively full, though still sparse or lacking in some key areas. Most accounts of the history of Greek and Roman medicine are based on ancient medical texts. As a study of the subject through its material remains, this book will be a unique and major contribution to the understanding of ancient medical implements and surgical instruments, of surgery, and of the history of medicine. In addition to medical instruments, the British Museum collection also includes an important range of objects which help to illustrate the multi-faceted approach to healing in antiquity. They include one of the largest holdings of collyrium-stamps – small, inscribed stone tablets which were used to mark sticks of eye medicine; Greek inscriptions honouring public physicians; stone statues, bronze figurines and engraved gemstones depicting the principal healer deities; and marble and terracotta models of body parts (‘anatomical votives’) dedicated to the healer deities by those seeking divine cures. Together with the instrumentation, the publication will show how they encompass most aspects of ancient medicine and represent starting points from which to develop discussions of strategies for health and healing.
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A Rothschild Renaissance A New Look at the Waddesdon Bequest in the British Museum
(2017)
Shirley, Pippa
;
Thornton, Dora
In 1898, Baron Ferdinand Rothschild bequeathed to the British Museum the contents from the New Smoking Room at his home at Waddesdon Manor, a collection of nearly 300 objects to be known as the Waddesdon Bequest. The Bequest contains some of the most beautiful examples of medieval and Renaissance craftsmanship, including exquisite pieces of jewellery, silver plate, painted enamels of Limoges, glass, maiolica and microcarvings in boxwood. To coincide with the opening of the new gallery supported by the Rothschild Foundation, a conference was held at the British Museum. Subjects included new attributions for sculptures, a detailed discussion of the making and marketing of forgeries by Salomon Weininger, Frédéric Spitzer and Alfred André, the legal and tax issues surrounding bequests in the late 19th century as well as new research on jewellery. This publication presents these findings and through up to the minute scientific and academic research, positions the Waddesdon Bequest within a wider intellectual and historical context for the first time.
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The Snettisham Hoards
(2024)
Farley, Julia
;
Joy, Jody
For over 60 years, spectacular discoveries have been made on a wooded hillside at Snettisham, overlooking the northwest Norfolk coast, close to Hunstanton. The location of the discoveries, at Ken Hill, is known as the ‘gold field’ because of the large number of gold and silver alloy neck-rings (‘torcs’) and coins recovered from the site. Known as the ‘Snettisham Treasure’, these objects represent one of the largest collections of prehistoric precious metal objects ever discovered, and one of the largest concentrations of Celtic art. The objects were found in at least 14 separate hoards buried between 150 BC and AD 100 – spanning the late Iron Age and early Roman periods, but with a peak of activity during the late Iron Age. The objects from Snettisham are widely known, but the site has never been fully published. This book is the first comprehensive account of the discoveries and excavations at the site and presents a full catalogue of the finds. The majority are in the British Museum, with a significant collection also held by Norwich Castle Museum. The book also presents the results of extensive scientific analysis, revealing new and exciting details about how torcs were manufactured. Discussion chapters explore the importance of torc design and decoration, torc biographies, and the relationships between people, objects, and materials in Iron Age Norfolk. The final section places Snettisham in its wider social and landscape context. Why were these artefacts deposited here? What was so significant about this location? What purpose did the hoards serve and what sort of society could make such complex and technologically accomplished artefacts? The authors argue that each hoard represents different collection and depositional histories. The repeated, yet varied, acts of deposition at the site were part of creating, negotiating and reinforcing social structures, as well as performing and creating social change.
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The Ringlemere Cup: Precious Cups and the Beginning of the Channel Bronze Age
(2006)
Needham, Stuart
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Parfitt, Keith
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Varndell, Gillian
In 2003 the British Museum acquired the recently discovered Ringlemere gold cup, a rare example from the Early Bronze Age. This is the first proper catalogue of a small group of similar cups in exotic materials which are put into a broader period context. They have profound significance for understanding the development of Bronze Age culture in north-west Europe, for which it should be a standard reference work.
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Matter of Faith: An Interdisciplinary Study of Relics and Relic Veneration in the Medieval Period
(2014)
Robinson, James
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de Beer, Lloyd
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Harnden, Anna
This publication is the outcome of the conference Matter of Faith, held to accompany the British Museum’s exhibition Treasures of Heaven, which brought together over thirty international experts in the field to present new research around the themes of medieval reliquaries and relic veneration. The result is an interdisciplinary study of a thought provoking and controversial topic featuring some of the period’s most beautiful and celebrated objects. The papers are arranged in three broad groups to highlight issues such as pilgrimage and a sense of place, materiality, conflict, controversy and doubt. The section on materials is placed centrally to reflect its core significance, exploring not only the sacred matter that comprises a relic – such as the milk of the Virgin Mary – but also the precious materials used to enshrine relics such as gold, silver, rock crystals and enamels.
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The British Museum Citole: New Perspectives
(2015)
Speakman, Naomi
;
Robinson, James
The British Museum citole is a unique example of medieval craftsmanship and is one of very few instruments from the Middle Ages to have survived. Its long, complex history includes a connection with the court of Elizabeth I and its conversion to a violin. The essays in this volume are the results of a conference held to highlight recent research, conservation work and scientific findings specifically related to the British Museum citole. The book enhances our understanding of one of the British Museum’s most celebrated objects by drawing together experts from the fields of history, art history, music, organology, conservation and science and performance practice. The result is a more developed understanding of the object within a wider historical context.
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Dea Senuna: Treasure, Cult and Ritual at Ashwell, Hertfordshire
(2018)
Jackson, Ralph
;
Burleigh, Gilbert
The hoard of Romano-British temple treasure discovered at Ashwell, Hertfordshire, in 2002, was a unique and sensational find. Comprised of some 27 gold and silver objects, it appears to have been buried in the later 3rd or 4th century AD. It includes an important silver-gilt figurine, a splendid suite of gem-set gold jewellery and beautiful gold and silver plaques, many of which were inscribed with votive dedications to the hitherto unknown goddess Senuna. Subsequent excavations revealed a complex open-air ritual site, where feasting, religious activity and ritual deposition took place over a long period of time. This book combines a full discussion and catalogue of the hoard, alongside those of the related British treasures from Barkway and Stony Stratford, as well as a report on the excavations and the numerous ritually deposited finds they brought to light, including jewellery, coins, figural objects, ceramics and animal bone. The Ashwell treasure and the excavated finds, which were acquired by the British Museum, are exceptional discoveries that provide fascinating new insights into the ritual of Roman religion, both in Roman Britain and the wider Roman world.
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British Museum Research Publications

British Museum Research Publications

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