Behind the scenes at the National Museums Collection Centre

By Carenza Murray, Work Experience Student with Collections Services

Hello everyone!

I’ve been the work experience placement at the wonderful National Museums Collections Centre in Granton for the last surprisingly short five days. For four days I’ve been based in the Collections Centre but on Tuesday I was in the National Museum of Scotland itself. If you - yes, you! – haven’t been yet, then you should go: the Museum is amazing in size and structure, and magnificent in its collection content, as, including the reserve collections, they have over four million objects and counting, in case you were wondering.

Monday

After arriving at the National Museums Collections Centre on a rather cold and dreary morning, what struck me at first was the very friendly and warm welcome from the staff at the Collections Centre. I thought it would be full of people who were going to be depressed and stocked up on way too much caffeine, but no, there was a surprisingly happy atmosphere for a Monday morning and some genuinely nice people too!

I was given the tour of the Collections Centre buildings (only five currently contain collections, as some of the older buildings are being demolished to make way for a shiny new storage building) and I was startled by the sheer size of the site. I’m not exaggerating when I write that it’s huge. When I first walked into Building 14 (the first building in the tour of the site), I was overwhelmed by the vast size of it; the buildings were all like the TARDIS.  I was quite unresponsive throughout the rest of the tour because I was speechless!

From whale bones to frogs pickled in jars the Collections Centre has it all.

In the afternoon, I learned how to handle the artefacts with the care that they require. I found it amazing how close conservators get to objects. I was able to see these objects from a conservator’s point of view, so with that came an almost overwhelming sense of responsibility. After that I knew that my work experience week was never going to be ordinary.

1, 2, 3 Lift! A lesson in object handling, and packing practising on an office chair,
before getting close to real objects.

Tuesday

Tuesday entailed a different venue to explore: the Museum itself on Chambers Street.

I was given a tour of this site: mind-blowing isn’t it? It’s hard to take in the actual age of some of the objects: when I was shown the Early People section of the Museum it was very difficult to think that the objects on display are over thousands, if not millions, of years old.

From the terrific T-Rex to the amazing amethyst geode, the range of collections of the Museum are spectacular.

On Tuesday afternoon, I was taken to the Loans and Collections Development departments, where I learned how objects are loaned and transported to and from the Museum, such as the current Vikings! exhibition, which is mostly on loan from the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm. I was also shown the ADLIB database, which contains information on most of the objects in the collection and their whereabouts. I found this very intriguing, especially the amount of work the system actually requires. You need to enter information about each component part of an object individually, for example, a teapot and its lid have separate object records.

Wednesday

Half way through the week, Wednesday involved looking at artefact conservation and paper and textile conservation back at Collections Centre HQ.

In the morning with the artefact conservators, I looked at how to conserve objects and the various different methods which can be used. It was incredible how varied their work can be. One day they’ll be working on some taxidermy, the next day they could be working on some objects made entirely of glass. It also struck me how precise you have to be in this work: a mistake could mean that an irreplaceable object is damaged beyond repair.

The afternoon entailed learning about the conservation of Paper and Textiles. The fragility of these objects is unbelievable, how they survived centuries of different owners and conditions is something I can’t understand. I made a padded hanger (which I think I made rather clumsily). These help to conserve clothing. They stop any acid within the wooden hangers from damaging the textile, and also support the costume seams. I was able to use my hanger on a piece of clothing, (after three attempts with different outfits) we found it fitted into a beautiful pink dress covered in small flowers which had a great level of detail and accuracy.

Third time lucky; the padded hanger fits!

Thursday

Thursday’s tasks included some work in the Analytical Research labs and a look at the conservation of different works of Engineering.

I was very excited about Thursday morning as Analytical Research is in some ways similar to what I want to do when I’m older: forensic anthropology. It didn’t disappoint. With the Analytical Scientist, I looked at different ways to analyse objects to find out many different things. It was a great insight into the way we understand objects.

Engineering conservation was very interesting in the afternoon. I was shown around another section of storage in which there were contraptions of all kinds. It was great to see that many of the items in storage still actually function. Some of the objects come into the Collection Centre in pieces, and some of the time the engineers have to guess what they would have looked like, which requires a great deal of patience. They then rebuild the object, and to see the finished piece is amazing. It’s rare to get the chance to see behind the scenes at Granton, so keep an eye out for any opportunities that come up, like Doors Open Day last year.

Cars and carriages in the National Museums Collection Centre.

Friday

My fifth and final day at the National Museums Collections Centre included a look at ways that objects from the collections are photographed.

I saw the range of objects that photography has to work around and I can tell you now, it’s not a walk in the park! Glass particularly is difficult. The photographers have to work around so many different objects and take photographs with a great deal of care. They also have to work with many different camera angles, and work with a high level of accuracy. It was very intriguing, but I don’t have a very high level of patience so I found it quite trying to get the perfect angle for an object.

So that’s it for my round up of my week here at Granton. It was a great experience and an unmissable opportunity. It was good to work with such great people and I am so lucky to have gotten the chance to work here.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully, this blog gets your ‘seal’ of approval!

(What? Was that too cheesy for you?)

 

Running like clockwork: a day with Engineering Conservation

By James Gulland, Support Assistant, Facilities Management

The ‘Across the floor’ programme at National Museums Scotland encourages staff to spend a day with another department, to find out more about what that department does and learn from their working practices.

Having worked in maintenance engineering for over thirty years, I was keen to learn more about Engineering Conservation. Coming from a manufacturing background, I was interested in finding out more about the difference between our working environments.

Working as a support assistant I am regularly involved in transporting artefacts and objects, so I looked upon this as an opportunity to further my knowledge of Collections Services. I have a particular interest in clocks and was delighted to find out I would be working with the Tod Head lighthouse, which is clockwork driven.

This first-order dioptric flashing light was presented to the Museum by the Northern Lighthouse Board and is being reassembled at the National Museums Collection Centre. It was designed by Messrs Stevenson, civil engineers, of Edinburgh, with the optics constructed by Henry-Lapaute of Paris. The optics are very different from any others we have in the National Museums Scotland collection, such as those from Eilean Glas and Inchkeith and the Tay leading light, made by the Chance Brothers of Birmingham, or Sule Skerry’s optics, which were made by Barbier et Bernard of Paris.

Working alongside Darren Cox at the Collection Centre, I was occupied cleaning and identifying various parts of the clockwork mechanism in preparation for reassembly. I found it really interesting that a lighthouse lamp could be clockwork driven, although the fact that it had to be wound up every half an hour seems impractical!

Working on the Tod Head lighthouse mechanism.

I also spent time working on a pendulum clock movement. Darren dismantled the movement, pointing out the various parts and explaining their function. I was then given the task of assembling the clock movement. After successfully achieving this, I then proceeded to dismantle and assemble the clock once more to familiarise myself with this practice.

Working on a pendulum clock.

I thoroughly enjoyed my Across the floor day with Engineering Conservation and appreciated the insight into their work. After this experience, I would welcome the opportunity to work directly with the Engineering Conservation team in the future.

Interested in the workings of clocks and lighthouse mechanisms? See the Ritchie clock, Millennium Clock and Midsummer Chronophage and two lighthouses lenses from our collection in the Grand Gallery and Discoveries gallery at National Museum of Scotland.

 

Doors Open Day at the National Museums Collection Centre

By Wendy Turner, Head of Collections Services

On Saturday 22nd September a happy band of museum curators, conservators and collections managers led groups of visitors around the National Museums Collection Centre as part of Doors Open Day 2012. In preparation for this I was asked to show STV reporter Laura Piper around the site. You can see the report from the day on the STV website here.

Doing that visit got me thinking about my job and led me to declare “I’ve got the best job”. In my new role as Head of Collections Services I am based at the Collection Centre and this means I am surrounded by millions of fantastic objects and specimens and work alongside an incredibly talented team of people.

Wendy shows off some of the shoes in our collection at a previous Doors Open Day.

At the Collection Centre we research, conserve, preserve, and photograph the collections, preparing them for exhibitions at our other sites and for lending them in Scotland, the UK and internationally. Our excellent facilities enable researchers and visitors from across the world to come and study our collections.

Since the mid 1990s we have been developing the site, constructing state of the art buildings to house our collections in. Most recently we constructed a new building to house the collections that had been stored in cramped and challenging conditions in the basement of the National Museum of Scotland. We’re now working on designing another new building to house some of our collections which are currently stored off site. This work supports us in regenerating our displays and is helping us to improve access to our reserve collections.

I’ve worked for National Museums Scotland for over twenty years and as I say in the video every day is different and that’s why I think I’ve got one of the best jobs in the country.

See photos from the day and hear Wendy’s commentary in the video below, reproduced here with the kind permission of STV.

 

Turkey red: a study in scarlet

By Graeme Yule, Photographer. Additional Text by Sally Tuckett and Stana Nenadic from “Colouring the nation”, a new in-depth study of the Turkey red pattern books in the National Museums of Scotland. Textile History (Forthcoming 2012/3).

 Working with Dr Sally Tuckett from Edinburgh University I was given the task of photographing examples of Turkey red for an online exhibition hosted by National Museums Scotland. Due to the specific nature of the samples colour accuracy and continuity were of paramount importance to the cataloguing of this collection.

Turkey red peacock print.

The production of Turkey red dyed and printed cottons was a major industry in the west of Scotland, particularly in the mid to late nineteenth century. Although the extensive works were pulled down in the second half of the twentieth century, our knowledge of this industry is significantly aided by the survival of approximately 200 pattern books, now housed in the National Museums Scotland textiles collection.

Turkey red floral patterns.

These pattern books are the foundation for a new study into the wider Scottish decorative textile industry. The ongoing examination of these pattern books has shown the variety and longevity of Turkey red dyed and printed patterns, as well as providing insights into wider aspects of the textile industry, including issues of design, manufacture and trade.

Turkey red patterns.

The production of a colour-fast red dye that could withstand frequent washing and sunlight was a long-standing ambition of dyers in eighteenth-century Britain. Called ‘Turkey red’ because it originated from the Levant region, the original process, which was time-consuming and expensive, was based on the extraction of alizarin from the madder root, which was then fixed to the fibre using oil and alum, as well as a host of unsavoury ingredients such as sheep’s dung, bullock’s blood and urine.

Turkey red geometric patterns.

Manufactured in millions of yards and in a huge variety of designs, few of these colourful textiles survive today, other than in the form of samples and designs in pattern books. Historians of textiles and dress have long recognized the importance of pattern books as sources.

Turkey red patterns.

Pattern books were kept by manufacturers as records of their designs, manufacturing processes or orders. The National Museums Scotland Turkey Red Collection consists of 200 bound and unbound pattern books.

Turkey red floral patterns.

In all there are approximately 40,000 items in the collection, consisting of Turkey red dyed and printed cotton samples. The condition of the pattern books and the individual samples vary considerably.

Turkey red patterns.

These were accessioned to the National Museums Scotland collections in the 1960s on the demise of the United Turkey Red Company in Scotland, and have been largely untouched ever since.

Turkey red patterns.

Turkey red printed fabrics were rarely encountered in everyday life in Britain other than by the industry’s workers, as the large proportion of goods were for such markets as Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, West Coast of Africa, East Asia and India. Many of the animals present in the designs represent the wildlife native to these export markets.

Turkey red patterns featuring exotic animals and birds.

The Turkey red dyeing and printing industry in Scotland was concentrated in the Vale of Leven, Dunbartonshire. William Stirling and Sons established themselves as Turkey red printers in the early nineteenth century. Their main rivals in the Vale were two firms run by brothers, John Orr Ewing and Co. and Archibald Orr Ewing and Co.

Hunting scene.

Competition between the Vale of Leven firms was brutal, with much copying and theft of designs among the rivals. Knowing that such design espionage existed makes it harder to definitively say if a pattern book belonged to one or another firm. On present research, just 41 per cent of the National Museums Scotland volumes can be securely connected with a specific Turkey red manufacturer.

Hunting scene.

In 1898 William Stirling and Sons, John Orr Ewing and Co. and Archibald Orr Ewing and Co., along with Alexander Reid and Sons of Milngavie, amalgamated to form the United Turkey Red Co. Ltd. (UTR).

Pattern featuring dancers and musicians.

Having set up a temporary studio in building 15 at the National Museums Collection Centre, great care was taken with lighting and exposure to ensure consistent and accurate results whilst photographing a collection of samples that varied greatly in size, condition and colour.

Each sample was photographed with a colour chart, and a strict colour management work flow was set up to insure the digital processing of the images would maintain the colour integrity of the original sample.

Turkey red pattern book with colour chart.

The large files that we can produce show a level of detail within the design that is not always apparent to the naked eye.

Turkey red pattern with a horse and rider.

Using extension rings on the lenses allowed us to produce extreme detail within the images, to the point where you can almost count the individual threads of the fabric.

Individual threads in a piece of Turkey red fabric.

The National Museums Scotland patterns books, particularly when the details they contain can be linked to other sources, are yielding a more subtle understanding of the Turkey red textile industry in Scotland than was formerly possible, showing us the rich and diverse character of this little understood industry. This joint project between National Museums Scotland and the University of Edinburgh is intended to bring a wider understanding of an aspect of the Scottish textile industry which had a global impact.

For further information about the project please visit www.colouringthenation.wordpress.com. Keep an eye on the National Museums Scotland website for more information on the online exhibition, due in 2013.

 

Seeing the invisible

By Neil McLean, Photography Manager

Have you ever wondered who or what is lurking behind a faded photograph?

The photography section at National Museums Scotland is currently digitising our museums collection of pioneering calotypes from the two albums that belonged to Dr John Adamson, elder brother of Robert Adamson, of the famous early photographic partnership of David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson. These calotypes consist of a paper negative original (no longer present) which is then contact printed onto a fibre based paper to produce a positive image.

During the photography process I became aware that many original images had faded to either a blank sheet or a very faint outline. Although it is important to photograph the images as they now appear, the need to know what was originally photographed is compelling.

Discovery process

Because the chemical dyes in these faded originals are so washed out and the fibre paper is quite irregular, a process of shining light through the paper to enhance the images was not a suitable solution.

During experimentation I discovered that using a combination of Photoshop and Lightroom techniques, image enhancements were possible. I have discovered that this digital conservation process can be repeated for all relevant pictures in this collection. And so the discovery begins.

The results so far

Original faded negative image.

The same image (reverse positive) after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a woman.

Original negative image.

The same image (reverse positive) after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a woman.

Original positive image.

The image after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a man.

Original positive image.

The image after digital conservation reveals a table set for tea.

As you can see, the original tone is not always preserved. This is because, as part of the enhancement process, I am selecting localized colour tone and density and gaining detail and contrast. During this procedure tones will be sacrificed for definition gains. Also at this stage the image’s visual enhancement process is superseding the retention of colour. Further developments will include the retention of the original’s appearance.

Uncovering the unknown

So far in this development, people and objects have been discovered: the likelihood that the subject matter in these photographs has not been visible for over 100 years. We don’t yet know who these individuals are or where the objects were photographed. However, in addition to our collection, many other collections of photographs exist from the dawn of photography during the 1840s, the Hill and Adamson era, and the answers to these questions may lie there.

 

Photo sharing with Fife Museums Forum

A guest post by Claire Robinson, Fife Museums Forum

How can museums share their collections with as many people as possible without access to much-needed financial resources or staff time? This was the exciting challenge faced by a steering group within the Fife Museums Forum, a collaborative network for museum professionals working in museums across Fife, charged with the task of publicising member museums and their diverse collections.

Following the example of leading museums, including National Museums Scotland and the V&A, we decided to reach out to museum audiences by embarking on a project to create a Flickr photo-sharing group for the Fife Museums Forum.

At the outset of the project, we were aware that members of the Forum had very varied levels of experience of photography and using social media. In order to ensure the success of the project, we would have to provide some form of training and support on both counts.

We got in contact with Megan Combe, National Partnerships Officer at National Museums Scotland, who very kindly offered to arrange a workshop on ‘Studio Photography for Social Media’ as part of the Knowledge Exchange programme. As part of their Responsive programme, the workshop would be in partnership with the Fife Museums Forum, but open to anyone outwith the Forum who had a real need for the course.

On 27 September representatives from museums across Fife, from Dunfermline to St Andrews, left the Kingdom and travelled to Edinburgh ready to be let loose on the world of social media and photography!

In preparation for the afternoon training session, Megan had asked attendees to dust off their cameras and practise their photography skills by taking a few shots of museum objects. Armed with cameras and a lot of enthusiasm, representatives from the Forum thought that it would be a good idea to combine our ‘homework’ with a visit to the newly-redeveloped National Museum of Scotland. We enjoyed exploring the galleries and taking photographs of some of the fascinating objects on display (and even had time to sample one of the National Museum’s new cafés)!

A quick group shot before heading inside to explore the National Museum of Scotland. Representatives from member museums of the Fife Museums Forum: the Carnegie Birthplace Museum, Dunfermline; Kirkcaldy Museum, Fife Council, Kirkcaldy; Scottish Fisheries Museum, Anstruther; Museum Collections Unit, University of St Andrews, St Andrews; and the British Golf Museum, St Andrews.

A small selection of some of the photographs taken by the Fife Museums Forum.

After travelling to the National Museums Collections Centre at Granton, we joined colleagues from Verdant Works, Dundee and East Lothian Council Museums. Megan Combe then introduced us to Elaine Macintyre, Digital Media Content Manager, and Neil McLean, Photography Manager, who were to lead the afternoon session.

They shared with us some handy tips on museum photography and digitisation, including lighting and camera techniques. We also learned about online photo applications and some good examples of photo-sharing projects. In response to some of our member’s concerns about the possible loss of rights over images published online, Neil and Elaine gave some very useful advice about the management and use of digital images in social media. This was followed by a very informal discussion session where attendees could ‘ask the experts’ any questions that they had about digital photography and social media.

We also had the very exciting opportunity to see ‘behind the scenes’ in the Photography Studio at the Collections Centre. Neil gave us some very helpful and honest feedback on how we could have improved some of the digital photographs (of varying quality!) that we had taken in the Museum earlier that day. It was also very useful to find out how to take good quality photographs of museum objects without having a professional photographer’s studio and using inexpensive materials, such as large rolls of coloured paper and table lamps.

Photography studio at the National Museums Collections Centre at Granton.

Photography studio at the National Museums Collections Centre at Granton.

As a result of the Knowledge Exchange training session on ‘Photography for Social Media’, representatives from our member museums have been provided with the knowledge, skills and confidence to both participate in and take forward the Fife Museums Forum Flickr photo-sharing project. Since the Knowledge Exchange training session, members of the Fife Museums Forum have been avidly taking lots of snaps of their museums’ collections to include on the Flickr page. Equally importantly, our visit to National Museums Scotland and the Knowledge Exchange training session provided representatives of the Forum with a great opportunity to meet with and share experiences with museum colleagues from across Scotland. It was a great day out!

We would all like to thank the National Partnerships, Digital Media and Photography teams at National Museums Scotland for all their support and assistance with this project.

You can view the forum’s efforts at their new flickr group www.flickr.com/photos/fifemuseumsforum.

 

Coleopterology to Couture Part 2: the creations take shape!

By Clare McIntyre, Department Administrator, Collections Management

Back in October, Fashion, Textile and Costume students from Edinburgh College of Art visited our entomology store at the collections centre, where they were encouraged to study, photograph and touch the insects.

Here’s a link to the original article.

Butterflies in the National Museums Collection Centre.

A few months on I’ve had the opportunity to see some of the finished art work and to chat about how the stunning designs developed from their initial inspiration.

The group that I visited were third year textiles students. Their project was to design a length of textile based on their observations.  In addition they were to team up with the fashion students to produce fabric for a full garment.  These designs had to be different, but complimentary and form a neat collection.

An example of the insect-inspired prints.

The lengths of textiles were exhibited at the college, as a display of stunning, shimmering, colourful fabrics which have been simply and elegantly hung and draped across mannequins.

The finished outfits from the student collaboration will be shown as part of a fashion show in May, but I was allowed a sneaky peek into the print studio to get an idea of what was being created.

Here are a few examples of the work along with some info and technical tips that the students described to me.

Claire Bryan with her design created using flocking.

Claire’s piece was based on the vein patterns and segments of butterfly wings.  She created it by painting flock sheet with coloured dyes.  The flock is added to the fabric by screen printing glue onto the silk in the shape of the design.  The glue is allowed to dry and then the flock is laid on top.  The whole thing is pressed in a heated press, then the flock sheet is peeled away, it will only stick to the glued area creating the pattern.  The use of the flock against the silk was based on the feel of the insects, as flock has a slightly rough, furry feel which is similar to some of the beetles and also represents the scaly quality of the butterfly wings.

Claire finished the piece with gold thread and hot fix crystals inspired by the jewel beetles from the collection.

Liucija Dervinyte and Nicola Lynch with their designs.

Liucija and Nicolas designs.

Nicola was influenced by the colours, the green, blues and blacks of the beetles.  The design was created using a technique called discharging. The white length of fabric was dyed with the rich jewel colours and then a bleach-like substance is applied which partially removes the dye, allowing the subtle pattern to be created.  At the bottom there is some dense beading reflecting the shapes and scaly qualities of the edges of the butterfly wings.

Liulij’s design was influenced by the transparency of butterfly wings, and their structure.  Some butterflies use interference colouring, which shimmers in different shades of blue as it reflects the sky and camouflages them as they fly. This fed into the choice of colour and texture in the design.  The darker parts have been printed with pigment, which gives them a heavy, more starched quality that contrasts with the lightweight silky, pale blue parts of the design.

Katie Watson and Kristina Lane.

Katie and Kristinas designs.

Katie was interested in the structure of butterfly wings and how they connect. Her design changes perspective to work with draping of the fabric. The material was dip-dyed and has then been printed with a technique called colour discharge. This technique works in a similar way to hair dye, as it bleaches the base colour and adds a new shade, The colour reacts differently to the different types of dye already on the fabric, creating the variety of shades.

Christina used two techniques: foil, which is similar to flocking but using a metallic foil; and Shiburi, which is a Chinese-based technique similar to tie-dying.  The fabric is pleated and folded before being put in the dye, which means the material soaks up different quantities creating patterns with light and shade.  Christina’s method is unusual because the foil was applied first and the Shiburi second; it was then heat set which added all the texture and crinkling, representing the translucent veined quality of insect wings.

Jamie Bruce with his blue quilted design.

Jamie combined butterflies and space…  He said that when he saw some of the specimens they reminded him of pictures of space so he’s incorporated both into his design. The colours are inspired by the jewel beetles, and he then added quilting and embroidery to provide further structure and texture.  For his collaboration he’s working on a piece that uses flashes of very vibrant colour, which is similar to a butterfly using colour to warn of predators as a defence mechanism.

Coral Higgins with her textured pigment print.

Coral created this amazing design based on tiger moths by adding pigment to velvet.  Normally this would be something to be avoided at all costs as it makes the velvet clump and become rough, but it was perfect for this design as it mimicked the feel of some of the beetles in the collection.

This was an unusual project for the students as they all visited the Entomology store together as a group.  They said that the explanations and anecdotes of Richard Lyszkowski (the Assistant Curator of Entomology) , were as inspiring as seeing the real specimens.  I asked if their research could have been done using the internet or books, but they said it was important that they were able to see the size of the insects and to get the close up view through a microscope of the scales and to touch the specimens, as this really added an extra dimension to their work and their ideas.

Students at work in the studio preparing garments for the fashion show.

Students at work in the studio preparing garments for the fashion show.

Students at work in the studio preparing garments for the fashion show.

Lindy Richardson their tutor said that it’s also been different to have mixed art disciplines working together, and that the students have found it really beneficial.  They’ve had to compromise and adapt or try new techniques, which has pushed them creatively.  It’s also a more realistic taste of how the industry would work on projects.

I was extremely impressed by their work and really chuffed that we had been able to inspire them. I previously wondered if they could have been as inventive as nature and years of evolution, and I have to say they’re not far off!

I’m hoping to get the opportunity to attend the fashion show in May and see the final outfits, so watch this space…

Designs and fabrics for one of the final garments.

 

From Stornoway with love

A guest post by Ashley Ferrier and Isabel Maclachlan, Museum nan Eilean

Under our National Partnerships Strategy (2006-2011) we developed four strategic partnerships. These relationships have benefitted National Museums Scotland and all partners to build confidence around lending, exhibitions and sharing skills, as well as informing future models for working in partnership across the museum sector in Scotland.

In December we were joined by two colleagues, Ashley Ferrier and Isabel Maclachlan from Museum nan Eilean in Stornoway as part of our ongoing support and in preparation for the Lewis Chessmen tour to Stornoway in April. Unfortunately with the unexpected arrival of the big freeze things didn’t go quite as smoothly as we’d hoped! Here Ashley tells us about the setbacks and unanticipated successes of the trip:

Being mainly front-of-house, Isabel and I are very rarely released from behind our desks in the galleries of Museum nan Eilean, Stornoway. However, on 30 November we broke free and headed to Stornoway airport, bound for a one day course on Object Handling at National Museums Scotland as part of the Knowledge Exchange Programme…. except our flight was cancelled due to snow in Edinburgh.  ‘How bad can it really be?” we wondered as we headed back to our desks.

VERY bad. Over the next five days our flights were re-booked, cancelled, re-booked, cancelled many times but finally an opportunity presented itself and we were able to land in Edinburgh, all set for some intense training (and a bit of light Christmas shopping)*.

Although the original course had been snowed off the day before, Megan Combe, National Partnerships Officer at National Museums Scotland, made a heroic effort to ensure that our time in Edinburgh wouldn’t be wasted and that we would be able to visit the National Museums Collections Centre in Granton to have condensed training with members of the Collections Care team.

However, with the weather still conspiring against us and Edinburgh’s roads and transport network ground to an unprecedented halt, the trip to Granton was inevitably cancelled. Undeterred, Megan made another round of phone calls and arranged for us to meet a number of staff members who were able to advise us on a variety of things.

It was great to be behind the scenes at National Museums Scotland and to finally meet people that we’ve emailed or spoken to on the phone over recent months. With the upcoming tour of the Lewis Chessmen arriving at Museum nan Eilean in April we had a lot of questions to ask about environmental conditions, treasure trove, loan conditions, marketing and facilities reports, amongst others, but we left reassured and feeling very knowledgeable!

In advance of the Chessmen tour we needed to decant one of our galleries and so it was great to spend time with Sarah Brown, Collections Care Officer,  who shared her expertise on the latest techniques and best practices of handling and packing a variety of artefacts. More importantly, Sarah instructed us in the fine art of making a variety of doughnuts and sausage shapes with acid-free tissue paper!

Sarah demonstrates techniques for packing textiles.

Isabel creates a tissue sausage.

We were able to put into practice what Sarah had taught us as we decanted our upper gallery over January and February, with the help of our colleague Caitriona Maccuish (who was able to use the guidance material from Sarah) and some National Museums Scotland supermen Stuart and Stevie, who made the long journey north in January to pass on their case building expertise (“just gi’e it a guid dunt”).

Ashley and Sarah discuss decant options.

Having the training with the National Museums in Edinburgh made a huge difference to how we approached the decant and we were a lot more confident when handling artefacts, particularly the textiles, because of it.

Without exception all the staff we met were welcoming and generous with their time and advice – and both Isabel and I really appreciated the chance to meet everyone in person. We were disappointed not to make it to the Collections Centre as it sounds amazing but maybe next time!

Many thanks to Megan who went out of her way to make sure that we got as much out our trip as possible, despite the very trying circumstances (not only the snow but transport problems, power cuts and the lack of heating!).  She even baked cakes for us!

* We didn’t get any Christmas shopping done because the shops closed early due to the snow. Thankfully however, not even the snow could prevent the determined duo from their bottle of ‘warming’ Prosecco in the Dome!

Back at Museum nan Eilean, Ashley demonstrates the textile packing techniques she learned from Sarah.

Isabel demonstrates her tissue puff making skills.

 

Collections Care: Diary of some precise, dedicated, serial tissue puff makers

By Laura Walsh, Collections Care Assistant

What do we do in Collections Care? Our purpose is looking after the Museum collections. This is no small feat:  the collection amounts to over 3.5 million objects. To pack and move one of these objects can take a whole day at times, so imagine having to pack and move a whole gallery or a particular room in one of our storage centres!

In our responsibility for moving and handling objects, we must pack some of our most priceless collections, taking objects to and from the Photography and Conservation departments and moving them from site to site. In doing this we need to make sure the object is packed correctly for transportation, which is where particular techniques of packing come into play. Over the last six months, I’d estimate:

Tissue sausages* made = 4,567

Boxes and trays packed = 5,930

Wedges made = 6,003

Tissue puffs** made = 40,012

Tissue puffs consumed (!) = 2

* Tissue sausages – A piece of acid-free tissue folded like a concertina, with flat tissue wrapped around it, so the folded tissue doesn’t rub against the objects.

** Tissue puffs – A piece/couple of pieces of acid free tissues, rolled/scrunched around the edges into a circular cushion/puff/pillow object, then rolled so that the scrunched edges are not touching the object.

Part of our collection: a Korean drum.

To give an example, one of our team packed this drum recently. This is an essential instrument in a Korean shaman ritual, leading the rhythm of these proceedings. As you can see it has many elements to it, including a drum beater wrapped in red nylon and orange string with delicate blue fastenings. It has to be packaged to meet its own individual needs – what materials has it been made with? Where is it going? How is it getting there? Will it stay in its packaging for a long time? What packing materials would be best suited to hold this object?

Box made for the Korean drum.

The solution was to make it its own box from scratch. It has many elements to it that allows the object to be put away, stored, and taken out safely.

The drum packed away in its box.

This is just one of the many objects that we pack in one day. Thank goodness there are nine of us! Look out for more blog posts about objects we have packed…

 

Life in the freezer

By Catherine Haworth, Preventive Conservation Officer

My official job title is Preventive Conservation Officer, but my friends call me the Bug Lady. That’s because one of the things I’m responsible for is all the insect traps in the museum. It’s my job to go round and check them once every three months to see if there are any insects.

Catherine looking at a trap with a clothes moth.

So what am I looking for? My public enemy number one is the clothes moth. You can see one on the trap above. You may have seen them in your home too. They’re small (less than 1cm in length), and golden coloured. They will eat your clothes, as the name suggests, but may also eat your carpets. Unfortunately, unlike some other moths, they don’t fly to the light; in fact they prefer the dark. This means that your wardrobe, or a museum store cupboard, is an ideal home for them.

Another thing we have to look out for is woodworm, which is in fact a beetle, called furniture beetle. It’s the larvae that do the damage as they munch their way through wooden objects. Then when they’ve pupated into adults they leave the wood and we see the characteristic holes which they fly out of.

A dead furniture beetle.

What can we do? If we find an infested object then we put it in our big freezer. Three days at -30°C kills any eggs, larvae and adult insects. But we have to wrap everything in plastic first to protect it from changes in humidity.

The walk in freezer at the National Museums Collection Centre.

Once an object has been treated we can’t put it back until the place it came from has been made pest free. We usually do this by cleaning. Then we continue to monitor and keep our eyes peeled for further unwanted visitors.