The British Museum
Shah Abbas: Two portraits, two views
Sheila Canby, curator of the exhibition Shah Abbas the remaking of Iran, discusses two very different portraits of Shah 'Abbas giving an insight into his character....
The British Museum
Hadrian: Building the wall
In AD122 Hadrian ordered a mighty frontier system to be built across the north of Britain. The result was Hadrian's Wall, a 73 mile barrier stretching from the Solway Firth on the west coast of Britain to the River Tyne on the east...
The British Museum
Hadrian: An emperor's love
Curator Thorsten Opper introduces Hadrian's young lover Antinous and the questions around his death http://www.britishmuseum.org/the_museum/museum_in_london/london_exhibition_archive/archive_hadrian.aspx
The British Museum
Hadrian: The power of image
For many years Hadrian was perceived as a peace-loving admirer of Greek culture and customs, a philhellene. But the one statue on which this long-standing perception was based is not all that it should be. British Museum curator Thorsten...
The British Museum
Hadrian:The imperial palace
Hadrian built himself a vast palace in the countryside, the villa Adriana in Tivoli about 30 kilometres east of Rome. It was a huge complex, designed to accommodate thousands of people. It was his administrative capital and represents...
The British Museum
The Tower of Babel with British Museum curator Irving Finkel
See various depictions of the Tower of Babel through the ages. With British Museum curator Irving Finkel http://www.britishmuseum.org/about_this_site/audio_and_video/exhibitions_-_archive/babylon_-_video_archive/towers_of_babel_video.aspx
The British Museum
The Babylonian mind
Many of the concepts you live by today have Babylonian ancestry. Hours being split into 60 minutes, minutes being split into 60 seconds – that’s Babylonian. Zodiac signs and predicting the future – also Babylonian. Take a wander through...
The British Museum
Book of the Dead: Ancient Egyptian coffin mask conserved for the exhibition at the British Museum
Conservators at the British Museum preparing an ancient Egyptian coffin mask for display in the exhibition Journey through the afterlife: ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead
The British Museum
Book of the Dead: Ancient Egyptian papyrus in the exhibition at the British Museum
Preparing pieces of papyrus ready for display in the exhibition Journey through the afterlife: ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead
The British Museum
Kingdom of Ife: Ife uncovered
Professor John Picton and metallurgist Paul Craddock discuss the meaning and the making of the sculptures in the exhibition Kingdom of Ife sculptures from West Africa...
The British Museum
How to make 2,000-year-old-bread
In AD 79, a baker put his loaf of bread into the oven. Nearly 2,000 years later it was found during excavations in Herculaneum. The British Museum asked Giorgio Locatelli to recreate the recipe as part of his culinary investigations for...
The British Museum
One minute with Munch
Meet the man behind 'The Scream'. Everything you never knew you needed to know about Edvard Munch in sixty seconds. Edvard Munch: love and angst 11 April -21 July 2019 Book now: https://bit.ly/2G2z2Tq Supported by AKO Foundation. In...
The British Museum
The palace decoration of Ashurbanipal
Ashurbanipal wasn't just an Assyrian king, he was a propaganda king. The layout, decorations and even the landscaping of his palaces were all made to point to one major fact - he was more powerful than you. WARNING: includes scenes of...
The British Museum
Assyria vs Elam: The battle of Til Tuba
The battle of Til Tuba reliefs are among some of the great masterpieces of ancient Assyrian art. The movement and details are truly stunning. That said, the scenes actually being depicted are anything but easy on the eye. Join curator...
The British Museum
Conserving a Japanese hanging scroll painting | A courtesan by Kitagawa Utamaro
The conservation and re-mounting of Kitagawa Utamaro’s hanging scroll, “Standing Courtesan Reading a Letter” and its silk mount (BM 2014,3048.1), was completed at the British Museum Hirayama studio in November 2016 thanks to generous...
The British Museum
The oldest, dateable depiction of the Buddha in human form I Curator's Corner Season 4 Episode 6
Curator Sushma Jansari reckons she's in charge of 'one of the most important objects in the entire British Museum' - and she's not wrong. The Bimaran Casket currently holds the record for the earliest dateable depiction of the Buddha in...
The British Museum
Hislop/Iannucci : Trump, Blair, Stalin and post-truth satire
Private eye editor and guest curator Ian Hislop talks to Scottish satirist, writer and director Armando Iannucci in an event billed by no one as 'The most important and refreshingly entertaining interview since Frost/Nixon.' Content...
The British Museum
Parthia V Rome: The battle of Carrhae I Curator's Corner season 4 episode 4
Vesta Curtis recounts one of Rome's most crushing defeats at the hands of the Parthians in 54-53 BC.
The British Museum
What's the meaning of Stonehenge? I Curator's corner season 4 episode 1
Neil Wilkin is back with another bronze age adventure. In this episode he is joined by Susan Greaney, Senior Properties Historian for English Heritage to discuss the history and importance of Stonehenge. Going into the heart of the...
The British Museum
Bitcoin, cryptocurrency and their 17th century counterpart I Curator's Corner season 4 episode 2
Using a rather fine example of a monkey smoking a pipe and the 'Fisher Price bubble lawn mower of the bitcoin world', Ben Alsop looks at the history of unofficial currency from 17th century shopkeepers' tokens to cryptocurrencies....
The British Museum
The doors of deception I Tom Objects!
Q: When is a door not a door? A: When it's a trickster god riding on the back of a bike. Curator Tom Hockenhull has selected key objects from the Citi exhibition I object; Ian Hislop's search for dissent to discuss the history of...
The British Museum
Sue's favourite Anglo-Saxon sword I Curator's Corner season 4 episode 4
Sue Brunning examines some shabby looking Anglo Saxon swords. #CuratorsCorner #AngloSaxon #swords
The British Museum
John Wilkes and the art of subtle tea I Tom Objects!
Who ever heard of a satirical magazine making any difference? Find out why a small gold No. 45 on a fancy teapot was the very height of radical 18th century politics in this episode of Tom Objects! Curator Tom Hockenhull has selected key...
The British Museum
How to get ahead in the Roman Empire I Tom Objects!
Praise for this video: Iconoclasm Quarterly calls this episode 'A rip roaring thrill ride of Imperial defeat and decapitation' whilst Roman Statue Appreciation monthly says 'full of juicy close ups of our boy Augusts.' Curator Tom...