Walter Traill Dennison’s Donation: Part 2 Walter Traill Dennison’s great-grandson, Duncan MacLaren, with Orkney Museum curator Ellen Pesci displaying a fob watch belonging to Walter’s father. In part 1 we looked at some of the artefacts belonging to the writer and folklorist, Walter Traill Dennison (1825-94) that had been kindly donated by his great-grandson, Duncan […]
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Walter Traill Dennison’s Donation: Part 1 Walter Traill Dennison’s great-grandson, Duncan MacLaren, with Orkney Museum curator Ellen Pesci displaying a fob watch belonging to Walter’s father. When it comes to Orkney’s folklore and folk tales there really is only one true master. No, not me, I merely follow in the footsteps of the great man.
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The Newark Project: the story so far. Summer exhibition 2022 The summer exhibition for 2022 was meant to have coincided with the finish of the Newark Project, looking at the eroding cemetery in Deerness, which was in use from around 600-1400 AD. Originally excavated by Don Brothwell from the Natural History Museum in London between
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Scapa Flow Museum Part 2, The Galleries The new Scapa Flow Museum opens on Saturday 2nd July 2022. It is still based at the former fleet’s pumphouse at Lyness, next to the ferry terminal, but a new building has been erected to house the internationally important collections of artefacts from both World Wars. This blog
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Scapa Flow Museum Part 1, The Pumphouse The new Scapa Flow Museum opens on Saturday, 2nd July 2022. The historic pumphouse building has been restored back to its original appearance and a new world class exhibition space created where the historical artefacts relating to Scapa Flow in two World Wars can be safely displayed in
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Sylvia Hays, “An Unappropriated World”: Recent Paintings. Orkney Museum 6th-27th November 2021 Sylvia Hays exhibition provided a much needed splash of colour to a dull, November morning. These photographs do not do the paintings justice, but they give you an idea of what there is to be seen. Below is her artist’s statement. Sylvia Hays
A Family Ba’ Reunion On Saturday 14th August we had a special visitor to the Orkney Museum. Katrina Clitherow is the granddaughter of Barbara Clitherow, nee Yule, the winner of the first Women’s Ba’ on Christmas Day 1945. When Barbara passed away in 1999 it was her wish that her Ba’ should return to Orkney. Her
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Orkney Coat of Arms Old Seal – Community of Orkney ‘Communitas Orcadie’ An impression of the ancient seal of the ‘Communitas Orcadie’, c1425. It shows the Norwegian Royal Arms being supported by two men. These figures are likely to be ‘Best Men’, members of the Orcadian aristocracy who would have sat in the public law
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DOORS OPEN DAY 18th September 2021 ‘Bells and Bonnets: a short reading of poems in response to some of the museum’s treasures’. By Lydia Harris We’re taking part in the free ‘Doors Open Day’ festival happening across Scotland this weekend, with a visit by local poet Lydia Harris to The Orkney Museum. Lydia will be
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The Carta Marina of Olaus Magnus, 1539 Carta marina et descriptio septentrionalium terrarum (Latin: ‘Marine map and description of the Northern lands’, commonly abbreviated to Carta marina) One of the most enigmatic artefacts that is displayed in the Orkney Museum is a copy of a large map of Scandinavia called the Carta Marina, created by
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