Blog

Enjoy the latest news and stories from the British Museum.

Bookcase with objects, trinkets and books on shelves.
Exhibitions and events / 8 June 2026

Introduction to 'Korea'

Sang-ah Kim explores 2,000 years of Korean art, revealing how global connections have shaped Korea's cultural identity today.
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Artist Esther Mahlangu, dressed in Ndebele costume, with the BMW she has painted in Ndebele patterns
Exhibitions and events / 27 January 2017

A vehicle for resistance

In 1991, to mark the end of apartheid, BMW invited Esther Mahlangu to make a work of art drawing on the traditional designs of the Ndebele.
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Jin Xian Qiu is interviewed whilst standing in front of a Chinese scroll
Museum stories / 26 January 2017

Chinese scroll mounting at Chinese New Year

As the year of the rooster approaches, the Chinese scroll mounters in the Hirayama Studio have plenty to crow about…
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Rock art painting of a herd of springboks
Exhibitions and events / 19 January 2017

South Africa: an exhibition of two halves?

The co-curators of 'South Africa: the art of a nation' describe the immense challenge of presenting 100,000 years of history through art.
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The Jericho Skull, a plastered human skull from 8200–7500 BC
Objects in focus / 17 January 2017

Facing the past: the Jericho Skull

Excavations near Jericho revealed a mysterious human skull, but it was only recently that Museum researchers have been able to learn more.
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The Great Court at the British Musuem.
Museum stories / 14 January 2017

29 things you (probably) didn't know about the British Museum

Discover weird and wonderful facts, including resident cats, the Museum's own tube station, celebrity visits and a record-breaking snail.
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A group of 10 people tour the British Museum's conservation laboratories
Objects in focus / 6 December 2016

Object Journeys

NLHF have funded a three-year project which sees the Museum support community partners to research and explore ethnographic collections.
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A man, naked, apart from a pair of trainers and a floral patterned scarf around his shoulders
Exhibitions and events / 5 December 2016

Maggi Hambling on life, death and drawing

Maggi Hambling talks about 'Touch: works on paper', a retrospective of her prints and drawings, many of which have never been exhibited.
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A conservator uses a brush and tweezers to remove backing material
Objects in focus / 15 March 2016

Conserving Dürer's Triumphal Arch: coming apart at the seams

Conservator Agnieszka Depta removes the linen backing from Dürer's Triumphal Arch, and separates the work into its original 38 sheets.
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A yellow bird and a black bird in profile
Objects in focus / 5 February 2016

A medieval alchemical book reveals new secrets

Bink Hallum and Marcel Marée discuss hieroglyphic texts and in particular the 18th-century copy of the Book of the Seven Climes.
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Torc consisting of eight ropes of gold twisted together
Curator's corner / 29 January 2016

How do you put on a torc?

Curator Julia Farley explores the fashion world of 2,000 years ago and answers that eternal question: how should you wear a torc? 
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Silver cauldron decorated with depictions of men, women, animals and birds.
Curator's corner / 13 October 2015

Who were the Celts?

Julia Farley discusses some of the objects in the exhibition Celts: art and identity that help to answer the question: who were the celts?
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A photo of a team of British Museum conservators gathered around the Triumphal Arch print, which is on the floor, crouching, sitting or standing.
Objects in focus / 19 March 2015

Conserving Dürer’s Triumphal Arch: a moving experience

Joanna Kosek discusses the delicate operation of dismantling our display of Albrecht Dürer's monumental Triumphal Arch in Room 3.
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