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?)

 

Workshops, research and loving the Millennium Clock: An intern’s summer

By Yuting Lou, Partnerships Intern

When I packed up all my stuff and took a train to Edinburgh two months ago, I was too excited to think about how tired I was or how sad I was to leave Leicester where I had lived for ten months. Edinburgh, here I am, finally! I had heard so much praise of Edinburgh from my friends, so when I had the opportunity to take a work placement at National Museums Scotland this summer, I took it without hesitation.

This work placement was the last part of my MA course in Art Museum and Gallery Studies. Having taken courses on history of museums, museums and communities, museums in a digital age and so on, the work placement aims to give us real experience of working in a museum.

Although I have experience volunteering at local museums and working in an office environment as a trainee reporter, the experience of combining these roles together, in an office behind the galleries, was totally new. Not to mention the fact that I was living in a foreign country. Many people warned me how different the accent would be in Scotland, and I was worried about whether I would fit into the new environment quickly, and whether I would be able to complete all my tasks. It was challenging but exciting, and I enjoyed my stay here and had a great time working with all my new colleagues.

A Knowledge Exchange training workshop in progress.

So what I have been doing in the past two months? Working in the National Partnerships Department, I conducted research on current trends on touring exhibitions in local authority museums across Scotland. I also helped carry out Knowledge Exchange workshops by preparing reading materials and factsheets, and worked with the Volunteer Co-coordinator on developing internship programmes. I designed and carried out surveys to find out what staff and students think of the current practice and future development of the internship programme and I also volunteered to work for the Sounds Global exhibition by carrying out visitor surveys and helping with exhibition evaluation.

The Millennium Clock in the Discoveries gallery at National Museum of Scotland.

Working in a museum was much more fun than I expected: I loved the fact that I could walk past the Millennium Clock and listen to the music every hour every day, and the chances that I have had to explore the collections. Not to mention so many colleagues who blew my mind with their vast knowledge of the collection! I also really appreciate that my line-manager and the museum gave me so many opportunities to attend meetings, workshops and networking events through which I met many museum professionals and grew my knowledge and skills little by little. Thanks to all the people I have met, the experience has been a pleasant journey and the highlight of my year. Thank you all and hope to see you someday again!

 

Variety is the spice of life

By Leanne Roberts, Festival and Event Management Student, Napier University, Edinburgh

Don’t forget to book your tickets for Wheels and Wings on Sun 23 September and the next RBS Museum Lates: Behind the Masque on Fri 19 October at National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

Over the past six months I have been working alongside the Learning and Programmes team at National Museums Scotland as part of my placement. I am a third year Festival and Event Management Student at Edinburgh Napier University and as part of my course I have been helping organise the large-scale public events with Bryony Hope and Craig Fletcher.

During my time at the Museum, I have been involved with a multitude of events. In May there was the World Wars Experience, where we went back in time to life during the First and Second World Wars. There were battles, flyovers, talks, a beauty salon and blistering sunshine! The only downside of the day was I dropped my ice-cream on the floor.

Miltary re-enactors at World Wars Experience, National Museum of Flight, East Fortune on Sunday 27 May 2012.

At Robots Live! in June we had robot wars, a giant animatronic T.rex, galaxy-discovering robots, prosthetic limbs, retro games, face painting and Segway rides and the Concorde hangar was full to the brim with visitors – even though it was raining it was a great day!

Tyrone the animatronic T.rex at Robots Live! at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune on Sunday 17 June 2012.

The RBS Museum Lates were complete madness from the moment the Museum closed at 5pm as we were frantically getting everything ready for the events two hours later. I don’t think I have ever run around so much! The atmosphere was amazing and the activities were brilliant.

I have never worked within a place where there is such a variety of things to do and odd things you need to find out – I’m now a Google search specialist! I have enjoyed working with such a creative and dynamic team, which has taught me about the practical side of organising events.

Having a go on the Segways at Robots Live! at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune on Sunday 17 June 2012.

The most memorable part of my time here has to be when I got to ride on a Segway with my face painted like a robot – who can say they get to do that at work? I am proud to have worked on such different themes during my six months here – it’s an experience I will definitely never forget!

 

From Membership schemes to home-made cake: a week’s work experience with the Development team

By Beth Pearson, work experience student from North Berwick High School

First days are always full of surprises, but luckily mine were all very pleasant! I am Beth Pearson, a 16 year old high school student from North Berwick, partaking in a week of work experience with the Museum’s Development team. I took the opportunity of coming to National Museums Scotland to gain a fuller understanding of museums’ internal workings as I am contemplating a career in art history.

Monday

On Monday, I arrived at the office after collecting my visitor’s pass with the very kind Jo and was relieved to be greeted by many smiling faces. At 10:30 I sat in on a Development Team weekly catch up meeting. This was a chance for me to see how each particular role connected with the rest of the department. After lunch, the Development Assistant, Ania, introduced me to the Membership admin processes and the steps she has to take in order to create a connection with a member of the public, and then to renew a Membership after 12 months.

After lunch, Charlotte, Development Manager, gave me an overview of the Patrons scheme. The fact that the Museum manages to maintain many ties with national and international Patrons interested me greatly. I left the office extremely pleased with how my first day went. This field of work has been made even more appealing to me due to the vibrant personalities that can be found in each department. It would be fair to say that Day 1 was a success!

An event for Patrons held at National Museum of Scotland.

Tuesday

Today I arrived at the Dental Hospital Building with really sore feet, so Jo and I decided to reschedule the “taster tour” of the Museum for Friday. Instead I carried out a task set by Ania to envelope Members’ renewal requests. This took me quite a while, yet it taught me the range of things that have to be done in the Development department.

Then Judith, Development Manager, explained how the Museum develops relationship with the corporate sector as well as individuals. The benefits and venues that the Museum can make available to corporates seem really attractive.

Glenmorangie are one of the Museum’s corporate sponsors.

Following a lovely sunny lunch break I started to write this blog post. Then at 14:45, Imogene, Development Officer, told me how she, along with other members of staff from other departments, send out the supporters’ magazine on time three times a year. After Day 2, I feel that I have been given a beneficial insight into the different layers of National Museums Scotland.

Wednesday

Wednesday looked initially quite simple on my printed timetable. However, I soon found the day to be brimming with activity. At 10:00 I was scheduled to meet Alice Blackwell, from the Scottish History and Archaeology Department. Alice’s official title is Glenmorangie Research Officer, and it was fascinating to see the work Alice does on the Glenmorangie sponsorship from the curatorial side. I was able to handle some precious artefacts from early medieval period and even before that.

Then Alice gave me a quick tour of the Early People gallery – one of the most interesting things that I saw there was the astonishing prehistoric butter that remarkably has survived through the ages!

The Early People gallery at National Museum of Scotland.

For lunch, Judith, Imogene and I met Morag from Historic Scotland to discuss developing Membership schemes. As well as revealing the marvellous improvement that technology such as The Raiser’s Edge database has made to the Membership process, the meeting also allowed me to experience the new Brasserie in the lower floor of the museum, which is really nice and  should appeal to all ages.

Thursday

Task day! The morning started with photocopying many Membership forms, then sorting the ones on which people had signed up to pay through Gift Aid. It was great to see how many people have become interested in Membership recently.

At 11:00 I set out to complete Charlotte’s task. This involved searching for images of technology and European and world design pieces in the ADLiB: Collections Services databases. Apple’s first computer and a communications device used in the Gulf War were some of the most thought-provoking photos.

Original Apple 1 personal computer from 1976.

Judith was next to set me a challenge and this time I researched potential sponsors; basically I did a lot of Googling! And that was day 4/5! The week was going by too quickly!

Friday

I arrived at the office on Friday reluctant to begin what would be the end to a brilliant week. After some tasks, I headed into the Museum itself to join a daily taster tour. I hadn’t set foot in the actual Museum since it was renovated and the lovely use of light and interactive pieces throughout the more central exhibitions had me enthralled.

Following lunch, I visited the Design and Exhibitions departments. I was in awe of the great multitasking skills of the Exhibitions Coordinators due to their incredible talent of being able to work on current exhibitions as well as ones way in the future!

In addition to meeting the exhibition team, I talked with Karen from the Design team. Since I am really into art and design, the opportunity to feel the different samples of paper that she prints onto and to flick through some successful examples of her work was a treat for me.

After this, I had the chance to see the Catherine the Great exhibition. The sheer wealth on display there was enough to render me lost for words. I also loved the many works of art present, as they projected Catherine’s authority in such a sophisticated way.

Catherine the Great exhibition at National Museum of Scotland.

However, the best part of the day was the tea and cake at 4pm! A hot cup of tea, accompanied by Judith’s commendable home-baking was a great end to a great week. Thank you so much for having me!

 

Fuel for the mind

By Sophie Ketteniss, Intern with Department of World Cultures

What do a Tibetan prayer wheel house, metal cast stingrays from the Pacific Ocean, multi-colored plastic dolls from Africa and brilliant red-glazed Iranian poppies have in common? No idea? Then have a look on the brand new section on the National Museums Scotland website presenting the Museum’s latest acquisitions.

During my work placement over the last six weeks in the Department of World Cultures I worked together with the curators there and with colleagues from Collections Management, Learning and Programmes and Digital Media to develop a concept for a new area on the website which would present objects recently acquired for display in the newly opened museum.

These beautiful 'Valley of Lar' poppies by Maryam Salour were acquired for the Inspired by Nature gallery.

Before I came to Edinburgh, I had gained a lot of work experience at different radio stations in Berlin, but had never been behind the scenes of a museum. So I wondered how working on such a project would be. Surprisingly, I noticed many links between the work of curators and journalists. It is necessary to be curious about unknown facts, to research persistently on a particular topic and to use all your creativity to present the results in a way that grabs people’s attention.

In some ways, both are responsible for preserving cultural values, but also for spreading the message that the world is full of things to see and to know. What I really like about the National Museum of Scotland is that the galleries are approachable for lots of different people and that they offer something for everybody. And what I like about its website is that it provides a broad range of services to the public. From today it will give people a further interesting way to become fascinated with the Museum’s consistently growing collections.

While working on the webpage I was particularly taken by the two newly acquired African dolls and the important role they play in the life of girls and young women as fertility figures. Imagine my thrill when I was given my own ‘fertility doll’ as a leaving present – a replica of a Lewis chessman – another one of my favourite objects.

These plastic dolls were bought in Africa for the Patterns of Life gallery.

I really hope that the New Acquisitions webpage will cast a spell over you as well. Who knows… perhaps you’ll take a fancy to the compassion-spreading prayer wheels or plant some fiery red poppies for yourself?

 

A week with roving reporter Robbie at East Fortune

By Robbie McLellan, a student from Trinity Academy, Edinburgh during his work experience at National Museum of Flight

Day 1: I have been to visit the National Museum of Flight before and enjoyed all the exhibitions and the atmosphere, and also the new exhibits such as the Boeing 707.  I gradually met all the staff who were all cheerful, friendly and helpful and I familiarised myself with the site. Not only technical information on display but personal stories about how they relate to people who worked here.  A very enjoyable day.

Day 2: Started the day off by assisting a sizeable group of Primary 3 pupils from Livingston around the museum.  Firstly around Concorde before moving onto the interactive activities in the Fantastic Flight exhibition.  They then made paper aeroplanes in the Education Centre and had flying competitions in Hangar 1 with them. They most definitely left with smiles on their faces, as did I.

Boys piloting the R34 airship interactive in Fantastic Flight!

After lunch I helped in Hangar 4 in the shadow of Concorde on a not particularly busy day but the staff were still as great as yesterday and welcoming towards me.  Then afterwards I helped with the stock in the shop.  Once again, another interesting day.

Day 3: The day began with helping in the office putting together an Airshow mail shot. Then after lunch I met with members from the APSS (Air Preservation Society Scotland) who are currently working on building a 1½ Strutter which is a World War One bi-plane. They also showed me round the Radar Room which houses radars from the very first types from Lancasters bomber aircraft all the way up to 1990’s Buccaneer aircraft. Another great day.

Day 4: My day started by helping out in Concorde as there were three very large groups of visitors.  One school was from the Shetlands, another school from West Barns and also a group of students from Holland. The rest of my day was spent in the office making up Concorde Information packs. Yet another very good day.

Pilot's helmet in the collections store at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune

Day 5: Unfortunately my last day of this very enjoyable work experience. Today I was given a Behind the Scenes tour with the Curator, Ian Brown and saw engines, propellers, fabrics, materials, an iron cross and model collection – there are so many items not put on display.  The afternoon was spent wrapping up the week. Lastly I must say thanks to all the great staff that made my visit here at the National Museum of Flight  most enjoyable and pleasant.

 

An A-Z of work experience

A guest post by work experience student Catriona Murray, Dalkeith High School

1. artefacts
2. bugs!!!
3. coffee, conversations, computers, chocolate
4. department meetings, disposals, DATABASES
5. early, like I was every morning!
6. future job ideas
7. good working environment
8. HISTORY!
9. inside view on how the museum works
10. JOKES… lots of them!
11. Knights… suit of armour in Granton stores
12. loans, lighthouses, larva
13. motorcars, moths, MILLIONS of objects
14. NMS, NFA
15. overall a good experience
16. photography, ploughs
17. questions
18. restoring, reading, researching
19. stores, spreadsheets, Starbucks… aah
20. terminology… time to go home!
21. ugly man costume… unusual
22. very different from school
23. work experience week
24. X.FC 8  ( Hunterston brooch )
25. yawn (on my way home from a day’s work)
26. zoology (stuffed elephant)

To sum up my week I’ve had a fantastic experience and I have learnt so much over the small period of time I spent with Collections Management. Everyone has been extremely welcoming and lovely to work with. I have many favourite parts of the week but the bit I enjoyed the most has to be my day down at the National Collection Centre in Granton. I loved being able to see some of the artefacts in the stores and being able to take pictures of some of the objects. I appreciate all that National Museums Scotland has done for letting me take this work experience placement, thank you all so much!

Catriona comes face to face with a suit of armour in the National Museums Collection Centre.

Admiring the cars at the National Museums Collection Centre.

Surrounded by bikes at the Collection Centre.

Helping out in the photography studio.

You can find out more about work experience at National Museums Scotland here.

 

A week of work experience behind the scenes at the Museum

A guest post by work experience student Georgia Watson, age 15, from Trinity Academy

At the beginning of the week I did not know what to expect. Work experience at a museum was going to be an experience if nothing else. The first thing I was to learn is that I had greatly misjudged the size of the place and the complexity of finding your way about. And that, despite my childhood excuses about having seen everything in the museum, I indeed had not.

The first day consisted mainly of wandering about the building and being introduced to people. All in all, a good day and a positive start to the week.

Although the start of the second day was a bit earlier, I still managed to survive the morning’s presentation without bother. The rest of the morning was spent seeing even more of the museum that I still hadn’t seen and learning more about the schemes for learning and teaching, and talking to staff. At the end I got to see, hold (and wonder, perhaps) at some of the artefacts, including a whale baleen (surprisingly big), a square of elephant skin (ew!), and a small Chinese glass globe that had been intricately painted from the inside (!).

Basket woven from whale baleen. Baleen is the fringe-like sieve in a whale's mouth that allows it to filter fish and small animals from seawater.

The third day I spent in and out of meetings (one of which included some stuffed onlookers…) and helping set up and partake in a jewellery craft workshop.

My second last day composed of visiting the National War Museum up at the castle in the morning to see one of the education programmes for schools. I myself hadn’t seen the programme since P7, so it was good to refresh my knowledge (and that wallpaper certainly brought back some memories).  Before lunch I volunteered to help out with a gallery survey for the Shining Lights exhibition. This involved making a general statement about what behaviours the visitors were presenting, and if they were engaging with the objects and activities on show (which indeed a large majority did). This is just one of the things that I didn’t realise was involved in working at the museum, and it was good to experience the variety of work that is important to the clockwork function of such an organisation.

After lunch we set off to visit one of the museum’s many storage warehouses at the National Museums Collection Centre in Granton. I may have seen some of the items before but it certainly was a shock to see some of them there  – the great Indian elephant, and the turtle that used to be in the entrance hall, for example. There is enough in one room to keep you interested for hours, never mind one whole warehouse! And it was fantastic to be able to see some of the items that have been in storage for many years and will probably never be removed from storage. In all I have to say I was thrilled to get the opportunity to visit the warehouses, despite some of the odder, slightly creepier objects (yes, you’ve guessed it, more stuffed animals)…

A bubble-wrapped dolphin in the National Museums Collection Centre.

The last day was a bit slower but still showed some more of the behind-the-scenes work that you’d often not get to see. Again, I was helping with surveys and also reviewing a pilot for a self-led tour. And I’m proud to say I now know how to go about understanding public opinion without actually having to ask five sheets worth of questions!

At the end of this week I believe I have learnt a lot, and I hope to build upon this experience. It’s funny how this week has gone so quick and how many things there are going on in just one department of the big machine that makes up the National Museum.

You can find out more about work experience at National Museums Scotland here.