Vicki Robb

Between Islands: Recent Posts Alex Macdonald has sent us these recent posts relating to the Between Islands project, which I thought I’d share with you. A blog written by former Orkney Museum Curator, Rachel Boak, here. Shetland curator Dr Ian Tait was interviewed by Cathy Macdonald for Radio Scotland about the Fair Game exhibition which […]

Support the Museums and St Magnus Cathedral with Online Donations The wonderful grave goods from the Viking Age boat burial at Scar, Sanday, remain in Orkney because of the Orkney Museum. Viking Gallery, Orkney Museum. Covid-19 has hit everyone hard, museums and galleries as well as businesses. There is now a way that you can

A Cruisie Mould A stone mould for making a cruisie lamp. The courtyard of Tankerness House, which houses the Orkney Museum, has a number of interesting artefacts displayed around the walls. Among the knocking stones and querns there is a piece of red sandstone with strange carvings cut into it. You can be forgiven for

The Big Tree, Tree of the Year Award Winner 2017 The ‘Big Tree’ in Albert Street, Kirkwall. Dr Tom Rendall, Orkney Museum Where is the Big Tree? What is the history of the Big Tree? Why is it important? What does it mean to folk? How did it receive nationwide recognition in the last few years?

Knocking Stones Knocking Stones in the Orkney Museum’s courtyard. Tom Muir, Engagement and Exhibitions Officer. Photographs by Gail Drinkall, Curator of Archaeology. When you enter the courtyard at the Orkney Museum you will see many large stone vessels, like mortars. These are ‘knocking stones’, which were used in the preparation of food for a family.

Barbara Yule’s Ba’, 75th Anniversary of the Women’s Ba’, 1945/6-2020/1 Barbara Yule’s Ba’, right. The Men’s Ba’, Christmas Day 1925, the year that Barbara Yule was born. (Tom Kent Collection, Orkney Library & Archive) The Ba’, as it is simply known (meaning ‘ball’) is not being played this year due to Covid-19. Christmas Day 2020

Between Islands Alex MacDonald, coordinator of the Between Islands Project writes: Our final museum exhibition is online! The Hebrides display can be found here. And of course all three exhibitions can be seen by visiting Between Islands here. Many thanks to the Hebridean museum team – Caitriona MacCuish, Ashley Ferrier, Seonaid Macdonald and Isabel McLachlan

From Enemy to Friend: A Tribute to Coriolano Caprara, 1920-2020 Coriolano Caprara with other Italian POWs in Camp 34, Burray. Gino’s POW identification card. It is with great sadness that I have to report the death of Coriolano Caprara, known as ‘Gino’ to his friends. He is the last of the Italian POWs who were

The Eynhallow Laments During the Orkney Storytelling Festival in 2019 one of the guest storytellers, Gordon MacLellan, invited Fran Flett Hollinrake and myself to contribute something towards an environmental arts project called CelebrationEarth! The idea was that it would be a storytelling event in 2020, but that obviously wasn’t possible. Instead we contributed other things.

Between Islands Project, Film 21 (Western Isles/Shetland) Alex MacDonald, coordinator of the Between Islands Project writes: I will be sharing information and film pieces with you as they become available in the period leading up to Christmas. I am therefore delighted to share this piece with you today, recorded specially for the project by one