“How should we categorise this?” we wondered after reading stories of farmer debates, tales of woe and the occasional exploding animal. Continue reading “Where’s my ten shillings?” and other peculiar museum correspondence
“What are you working on today?” This is a fairly usual question amongst collection staff at Queensland Museum. Continue reading Admiring the finest of thrones on World Toilet Day
Guest Blogger – Dr Emma Rehn (@BlueRehn), James Cook University and ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH) Alongside the fascinating artefacts and objects in the archaeological collections at Queensland Museum, you’ll also find a range of maps and drawings. Archaeological illustrations record crucial data and come in many forms – read on to learn more about visuals in archaeology in honour … Continue reading Getting Drawn into Archaeology for National Archaeology Week
By Marisa Giorgi, Information Officer, Queensland Museum There is nothing new about the use of adhesives and sealants. They have been a critical element in the technology of First Australians for thousands of years. Plant-based resin has been employed in the production of many traditional tools and when prepared correctly, resin can become as hard as rock. There is evidence of resin-use in toolmaking from … Continue reading Resin: an essential piece of kit
Ever wondered why we leave visitor books outside of exhibitions and what happens to them? We read them, and your feedback about our exhibitions helps us to develop better experiences! Here is some of what we have learned from the feedback from the Antiquities Revealed exhibition at Queensland Museum. Developing exhibitions Museums routinely provide exhibitions, and these are developed by teams of people from … Continue reading Insights from the Antiquities Revealed Exhibition visitor book
By Dr Brit Asmussen, Senior Curator, Archaeology, Queensland Museum It’s funny the weird and wonderful things you come across in the correspondence, held in the Queensland Museum Library and Archives! Searching through the archives Part of the work of a curator is to research the histories of objects in the State Collection and how we come to care for them. Part of this work often … Continue reading Fishy stories from the Queensland Museum Archives
By Mr James Donaldson (Manager/Curator, R D Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland) and Dr Brit Asmussen (Senior Curator, Archaeology, Cultures and Histories, Queensland Museum). The First World War Antiquities Project (Queensland) This blog is one in a series developed from research conducted during “The First World War Antiquities Project (Queensland)”, a collaborative project between the R D Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of … Continue reading Ancient Middle Eastern Antiquities and the First World War
By Mr James Donaldson (Manager/Curator, R D Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland) and Dr Brit Asmussen (Senior Curator, Archaeology, Cultures and Histories, Queensland Museum) The First World War Antiquities Project (Queensland) This blog is one in a series developed from research conducted during “The First World War Antiquities Project (Queensland)”, a collaborative project between the R.D. Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland, … Continue reading Collecting Ancient Egyptian antiquities during the First World War
By Mr James Donaldson (Manager/Curator, R.D. Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland) and Dr Brit Asmussen (Senior Curator, Archaeology, Cultures and Histories, Queensland Museum.) In this blog, we remember the First World War service of Samuel Emmett, and discover why he was drawn to collect Roman antiquities in England while convalescing there after the war. This blog is one in a series developed from … Continue reading Convalescing and collecting: Antiquities in the First World War
by Nick Hadnutt, Curator, Archaeology, Queensland Museum Like many people around the world, I start my day with a coffee. I drink it, I enjoy it and I forget about it. We have so many options to choose from – flavour, origin of beans, types of beans and how they are grown. This International Coffee Day (celebrated annually on 1 October), I was inspired to … Continue reading Have you tried Coffee and Chicory Essence?
By David Parkhill Assistant Collection Manager, Queensland Museum South Bank The Queensland Museum holds twenty shabti, or shabti related objects in its Archaeology collection. Here is a closer look at one of them. The afterlife Ancient Egyptians, along with many other cultures, held a strong belief in the afterlife. Also in keeping with other civilisations, they would include grave goods such as perfume bottles or … Continue reading Working for the Man in the Afterlife
Ancient Rome has had a lasting impact on the world, particularly on Western cultures. You may be surprised to hear that many of the objects, concepts, technologies and machines from Ancient Rome are still part of our contemporary lives. Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World exhibition includes working reconstructions of ancient machines and other technical innovations using materials of the era – wood, … Continue reading Ancient science in contemporary times
21 July marks #AskanArchaeologistDay, so we’ve asked Curator or Archaeology Nick Hadnutt three burning questions. Why did you become an archaeologist? I had worked successfully in customer service for a number of years before realising I needed a significant career change. After much head scratching, I completed a career aptitude test (I highly recommend them!) which focussed on identifying the various components within work that … Continue reading Ask an Archaeologist Day with Nick Hadnutt
Dr Geraldine Mate, Cultures & Histories program This week Queensland Museum archaeologists start fieldwork in an exciting community-led project exploring Australian South Sea Islander lived identities in the Mackay region. Imagine the scene… A fenced cattle paddock, some old concrete foundations, and a lovely tropical garden arrayed along a small quiet country road. One day two port-a-loos arrive, the next a bus and two 4WDs arrive and 15 archaeologists, anthropologists, … Continue reading Four years and a Pandemic in the making
Written by Mr James Donaldson (Museum Manager and Curator, R.D. Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland) and Dr Brit Asmussen (Senior Curator, Cultures and Histories, Queensland Museum). Queensland Museum and The RD Milns Antiquities Museum, The University of Queensland, are collaborating on a research partnership to learn more about the antiquities collecting activities of Australian WW1 personnel. Learn more about how this research project is … Continue reading Objects of War: The First World War Antiquities project
By Taylor O’Neill – Museum Studies student at the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Archaeology. Known as the Old Windmill or The Observatory, Tower Mill is an instantly recognisable part of Brisbane City and Queensland’s oldest building. What can archaeology tell us about this place? Located on Brisbane City’s Wickham Terrace, you’ve probably glanced at Tower Mill once or twice … Continue reading Tower Mill: An Archaeological Investigation of Queensland’s Oldest Surviving Building
by Isabella Zust-Sullivan, Student Intern, The University of Queensland When dealing with fragmented plates, saucers and cups, backstamps can be really useful in providing more information about these artefacts. However, with successful investigation also comes the inevitable mystery that arises when cases go unsolved. A Sea of Ceramic Over the past couple of weeks, I have worked at Queensland Museum as a University of Queensland … Continue reading Investigating Backstamps: The Trials and Tribulations
Animal mummies in Ancient Egypt In ancient Egypt, a wide variety of animals were mummified. Household pets could be interred with their masters so they could be together in the afterlife; joints of poultry and meat were wrapped in linen and placed in tombs as […]
Continue reading Held within eternal wrappings | Animal mummies in the Queensland Museum collection
Marisa Giorgi, Information Officer, Queensland Museum Grindstones are a relatively common tool found across Australia. But did you know grindstones have many varied uses? Archaeological science is revealing the complex nature of these stone artefacts. Introduction At Queensland Museum we have many grindstones of different shapes and sizes from across Queensland. These grindstones represent durable examples of everyday items used by Indigenous Australian people. They … Continue reading Grindstone – ancient multi-tools
by Dave Parkhill, Assistant Collection Manager Clear as Glass? Glass was used throughout the Roman world, with various applications and methods of manufacturing, and with colours ranging from an almost clear, pale green to vivid blues or other bright colours. A Dubious Origin Story Glass objects, mainly in the form of simple glass beads have been dated to approximately the 3rd millenium BCE, but it … Continue reading Looking through the Glass
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