Previous Temporary Exhibitions

Science behind the Object, August - September 2007

Fish skulls and tiger skeletons are among a collection of objects with fascinating back stories now on show in Aberdeen. The Science Behind the Object exhibition at Aberdeen University's Marischal Museum offers a rare opportunity to see treasures from the museum collections. Among the artefacts is the skull of a fish dissected by a curator whose brother had links to infamous Edinburgh grave robbers Burke and Hare. The skeleton of a tiger which once belonged to a 19th-century travelling circus also features, with the carbolic spray that belonged to renowned Scottish surgeon Professor Alexander Ogston, who discovered staphylococcus aureus, better known as MRSA. Exhibition curator Carla Dobson said: "The exhibition gives the public an opportunity to see a vast amount of interesting objects that haven't been seen for quite some time. These specimens explore the wonderful achievements of local professors and important figures in history."

Jacobite Virtuosi, May - July 2007

Jacobite Virtuosi: antiquarians and connoisseurs in Eighteenth century Rome draws on the rich holdings of Jacobite material in the museum, fine art and rare book collections of the University, as well as a loan of a rarely-seen portrait from Aberdeen Art Gallery. It opens a window into the world of the Scottish artists and archaeologists from Jacobite families who flourished at Rome in the eighteenth century when the Italian capital was the unequivocal world centre for the visual arts.

As well as paintings by Cosmo Alexander and James Irvine of Drum, the exhibition offers a first chance to see James Byres of Tonley's sumptuous scheme for the rebuilding of King's College, which, had it gone ahead would have given Aberdeen one of the finest University buildings in Northern Europe. That scheme makes provision for a central museum room, modelled on the Uffizi in Florence.

The exhibition also shows some examples of the kinds of treasures which the Jacobite artists of Rome sent back to Scotland: prints of antiquity and casts of Gems, superb engraved books, including James Byres' own pioneering study of the tombs of the Etruscans. From the University's MacBean Stuart and Jacobite collection, there are prints of the Stuart monarchs and princes as well as engravings of the extravagant ceremonial with which they kept up Royal State in exile.

Professor Peter Davidson, exhibition curator, said, "It is the nature of an ancient University such as this to act as the place of memory of its alumnae and their achievements. This exhibition brings before us a small group of cultivated artists from Jacobite families who were antiquarians and art-dealers in Rome in the later eighteenth century at the height of the grand tour, when Rome was unequivocally the world centre for the visual arts."

Nga Taonga: A response to Maori treasures in Marischal Museum, July – September 2006

The results of an art residency were unveiled at Marischal Museum on Monday, July 17, 2006 by the Deputy Chairman of the Maori Heritage Council of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Waaka Vercoe has travelled from New Zealand to Aberdeen to officially open the exhibition, entitled Nga Taonga: A response to Maori treasures in Marischal Museum. The exhibition of works by Marischal Museum’s Artist-in-Residence, Rhondda Greig, will be displayed alongside unique Maori treasures from the University’s collection. Rhondda said: “Being an artist-in-residence in Marischal Museum is an unusual but highly productive and stimulating time in my career. Artists generally work in isolation. To have skilled and professional people from other disciplines as colleagues brings a new dimension to creative activities, in this case, inspired by the objects in the museum.”

Marischal Museum cares for one of the most important collections of Maori objects in Scotland. Known as ‘taonga’, these treasures reached Aberdeen through the activities of explorers and collectors in previous centuries. Today, they record these links and offer inspiration for new understandings.

Rhondda Greig is an internationally renowned artist from Wairarapa, North Island, New Zealand. Rhondda has been working in the University’s Marischal Museum’s for the past year as the first Artist in Residence.

Murder in the Mist
New exhibition explores a medieval 'whodunit', June – September 2006

A new exhibition at Marischal Museum displays the bones of a young man who died around 1650 and whose body was discovered buried in a peat bog, along with an extremely rare piece of clothing to have survived from this period.
The remains were discovered in Caithness with stones weighing down the body and a twisted rope at the man’s side and the Murder in the Mist exhibition explores whether the man was the victim of murder in this medieval ‘whodunit’.

Alongside his skeleton the doublet he was wearing – a close fitting jacket worn by European men between the 15th and 17th centuries - is also on show. This has been borrowed from the National Museums of Scotland where it has been carefully conserved and studied. It is one of very few doublets to survive from this period, preserved by the special conditions in the bog. It is of good woollen cloth and fashionable cut, suggesting that he may have come from a fairly wealthy family. Neil Curtis, Senior Curator in Marischal Museum, said: “The doublet is one of a number of important items in the collection which have survived as a result of being in bogs. Also on display is the only prehistoric arrow with part of its wooden shaft to have survived in Britain and a unique Pictish deer trap.” Preservation in peat bogs is also discussed in the exhibition and compared with the famous Tollund Man from Denmark.

The exhibition was organised by Meg Hutchison, Honorary Curatorial Assistant in Marischal Museum.

Burns - Out of His Box, May – June 2006

A new exhibition at the Marischal Museum offers an alternative view of Scotland’s National Bard as part of the University of Aberdeen’s Word Festival 2006.

Burns - Out of His Box offers a tongue-in-cheek glimpse at what Burns may have been thinking and doing during the autumn of 1786, when it was his intention to take up the offer of a new life in Jamaica.

Artist Reinhard Behrens and poet John Glenday have lovingly constructed the exhibition of mock Burns artifacts including:

· Part of a raft, destined for Jamaica built by the poet while spending time at Brow Wells on the Solway Firth in 1796.
· A chest, filled with letters, poems, songs, objects of affection
· Personal items including a scrap of a ‘sark’ ripped by the notorious womanizer during a flight from a mistress’ chamber

Other humorous articles include an oil portrait showing the bard half submerged in the Solway Firth while taking a break from constructing his raft.

Between them, the contents of the box and the painting provide a new and exciting perspective on one of the world’s most famous (and infamous) poets and one of Scotland’s best-loved exports.

These ‘finds’ were first exhibited as part of the StAnza Poetry Festival in 2004. Fittingly, they are on show in the University’s Marischal Museum, founded in the year in which Burns gave up his ambition to sail to the New World.

Artist Reinhard Berens said, “For a long time I have been fascinated by the transformation of objects after they have been re-labelled or are shown out of their usual context. This exhibition allowed me to enjoy the humorous possibilities that are the result of such a tongue-in-cheek exercise.”

Elly Rothnie, Word Festival Producer, said: “We love this fun exhibition and are so pleased to include it as part of the Word Festival, it’s one for all the family. I’m sure Burns would have appreciated its whimsical nature. Don’t miss this extraordinary show!”

Super Models - Marischal Museum's New Exhibition, February – May 2006

What is a model? Much more than just children’s toys, the idea of the model is common throughout the arts and sciences and in many different contexts.

Marischal Museum’s latest exhibition explores how people have made models of the world and used the idea of the model to describe the world. On show are objects from all the University’s museum collections.

Just One More - Press Photography by Kieran Dodds, September - February 2006

Twenty-four-year-old Kieran Dodds envisaged himself as a wildlife warden when he began his degree in zoology at the University of Aberdeen. But after a spell as editor of The Gaudie and some freelance work at Aberdeen Journals, his long held passion for photography took over.

Kieran couldn’t have made a better decision to change his choice of career, as he was recently named Diageo Young Photographer of the Year just three years after becoming a press photographer.

Now his award winning work can be seen at a fascinating exhibition now open to the public tomorrow at the University’s Marischal Museum.

More than 30 captivating images will be on display. These include spectacular shots of sporting action; buskers on the Paris metro; townships, squatter communities and great white sharks in South Africa; portraits taken when Kieran documented the evangelist, the Reverend Billy Graham, on his final crusade in New York, as well as quirky and amusing pictures taken closer to home.

Many of the photos featured in the exhibition were taken by Kieran for the Evening Times in Glasgow, where he has worked as a staff photographer for the last two years.

He said: “When I used to pick up a paper I never understood the difficulties of press work. I want people to take time to appreciate the process behind the photograph. It’s is a thinking process and rarely do photos appear fully formed, it takes time and persistence, the exhibition will hopefully let people see that.”

Neil Curtis, Senior Curator at Marsichal Museum, said: "I am delighted that we are able to display this collection of photographs by an Aberdeen graduate in Marischal Museum which displays objects collected by many other graduates.

Intoxication: a Journey into Drugs and Culture, October - January 2006

The new exhibition 'Intoxication' at Marischal Museum focuses on how drugs or intoxicants have played a crucial role in society from antiquity to the present day. The exhibition makes various connections with elements of our everyday lives that most of us generally take for granted. How many of us know the chequered past of Britains role in smuggling opium to China, or how this trade was supported by the nations thirst for tea. Objects as diverse as a human lung specimen infected with lung cancer, an opium smoker's kit, an ether mask, and even a cannabis specimen, hash pipes confiscated by police etc, all help convey how drugs have played a part in our lives.

Exhibition curator Darren Swanson says:
'People tend to think of drug abuse as a fairly recent phenomenon, however upon closer inspection of our recent history, it is easy to come across countless examples of how drugs have been behind literary movements, economic booms, coming of age rituals, social occassions. In fact it is difficult to find areas of social life not affected by drugs. The purpose of this exhibition was to work together with police archivists and education officers, as well as drawing material from all of the university collections and also the city council collections'.

Rhondda Greig, Artist in Residence – An Overview, July - September 2005

In an exciting new development for the University of Aberdeen, Rhondda Greig, an internationally renowned artist from Wairarapa, North Island, New Zealand, has joined the University as Marischal Museum’s first Artist in Residence. Pat Ballantyne, Assistant Curator said: “Rhondda works in a wide range of media - oils, watercolours and prints, as well as glass and wood in site-specific commissioned works. She has many art works in public collections in New Zealand and Japan in particular, and in private collections throughout the world. She has also written and illustrated several children’s books.”

Now, an overview exhibition of Rhondda’s work will be on display at Marischal
Museum from 4th July. This includes Rhondda’s more recent drawings, created in Scotland. Rhondda says: “I have been working on a series of paintings called Find the Sun, two of which are in the exhibition. I have also included a series of charcoal drawings: Meditations on the Haar; these being the very first drawings I created here. I had never experienced such weather before coming to Aberdeen. Journeys to the west coast over the last couple of years have resulted in the Highlands and Islands drawings’ series which is also on display. All of these works have been a means to finding my way in my new environment.”

Summer Exhibition, June - September 2005

Marischal Museum's YoungArchaeologists@Aberdeen present their take on Roman and Pictish Art.

At recent meetings we have been looking at the archaeology and history of the Romans and Picts. We have looked at their art and music, how they lived, how they communicated and we even tried our hand at Roman Army manoeuvres. So why not come along to Marischal Museum and see our take on Roman and Pictish art?

Visit the club's website http://www.abdn.ac.uk/youngarchaeologists/

Extinct

What is extinction? Why do things become extinct? Is it a good or bad thing? Does extinct really mean forever?

These are all questions considered in a new exhibition ‘Extinct’ at Marischal Museum. Focusing on the past 100,000 years, the exhibition looks at how human activity has resulted in the extinction of animals, plants, diseases, cultures and technology and considers what extinction really means in the context of these themes. Objects are as diverse as a Great Auk egg, a polar bear paw and a BBC computer.

Exhibition curator Claire Smith says: ‘This exhibition gives the public a unique opportunity to see the range of University’s seven museum collections displayed together in one place. Whilst the collections are diverse, this exhibition proves that they are also complementary.’

On Charlie - Lives in the Oil Industry

A joint project between the University of Aberdeen and the British Library Sound Archive, was set up to create an archive of the North Sea oil and gas industry. As part of his research and recording programme, Hugo Manson spent time on Brent Charlie, one of the largest oil and gas producing platforms in the North Sea.

This exhibition highlights some of his photographic impressions of life aboard the rig.

Let it Snow, December 2004 - February 2005

We have a seasonal approach to snow and an idealised picture of what life should be like in it.

What was life like for the inhabitants of a land of harsh ice and snow?

This exhibition brings these aspects together to present a better idea of how people coped with the harsh reality of snow.

Sword of Power : Symbolism and Mythology of World Swords, August - November 2004

The exhibition opening in the University of Aberdeen’s Marischal Museum is a rare opportunity to see some of the museum’s collection of swords from around the world.

Swords from as far apart as Sudan, Afghanistan and Malaysia will be on display, as well as two historic Scottish swords. One of the Scottish swords is reputed to have been worn at the raising of the Jacobite standard at Invercauld in 1715.

Another highlight is the chance to see two Japanese swords which have just been cleaned and conserved, revealing details of their construction, including the maker’s name on one. This is an interesting example of the on-going care and investigation of the collections by the museum’s conservation department.

This is not just a glorification of the swords as weapons, it is an examination of their symbolism and mythology. Swords are a part of many traditional stories throughout the world, some of which are retold in the exhibition.

“The most awesome thing about these swords is the skill of the smiths who made them. I hope that people who visit this exhibition see the swords not just as ‘sharp pointy things’ but as supreme examples of the swordsmith’s craft.” Hilary Murray, designer of exhibition.

Before the Pharoahs, April 26 - July 2 2004

A new exhibition " Before the Pharaohs" is a celebration of the art of the craftsmen and women who lived in Egypt long before the pharaohs.

Marischal Museum is well known for displaying the University of Aberdeen's superb collection of Egyptian material - indeed, last term alone, over 850 primary school children came to Ancient Egyptian workshops at the museum. The pre-dynastic material - some of it 7000 years old, is not on permanent display and is less well known - this exhibition gives a unique opportunity to see some of the highlights.

Between 5000 and 3000 BC, people began to farm and build settlements in the rich lands around the Nile in southern Egypt. For nearly 2000 years before the pharaohs these early Egyptians created everyday objects that were works of art. Among the objects on display there are alabaster jars so fine that light shines through them - yet these jars were made with stone age tools.

"These objects are truly stunning - I particularly like the pottery. The jugs and vases were for ordinary everyday use but they have an elegance of shape that many modern craft potters would envy" Hilary Murray . Curatorial Assistant and designer of exhibition.

Museum in the Bag. Objects and inspiration, March 10 - April 20 2004

A new exhibition at the University of Aberdeen's Marischal Museum illustrates one of the innovative ways in which objects in the museum collections are used as an inspiration.

For a few years, pupils from Albyn School for Girls have visited the museum to sketch and collect ideas for designing carrier bags as part of a standard grade art course. Earlier this year museum staff saw some of the completed bags and liked them so much they decided to display them.

The exhibition 'Museum in the Bag' juxtaposes some of the bags and some of the objects which set their imaginations going.

'There is a lot in the local news just now about not using plastic bags - perhaps some of the shops should take a look at this exhibition - and get children to design some bright, fun and sustainable bags for their customers !' Hilary Murray curatorial assistant.

Carved Stone Balls - a Prehistoric Mystery, January 19 - March 31 2004

A new exhibition at Marischal Museum explores a prehistoric mystery with the help of local children from Woodside School- and of the sculptor Keiji Nagahiro who lives and works in Aberdeenshire.

Some 4000 years ago a series of decorated stone balls were painstakingly made - they are each about the size of an orange and have a number of regular bosses carved on them. As nearly 90% of the balls have been found in North East Scotland, archaeologists think they were made in this area.

No-one knows what the carved stone balls were used for. Archaeologists look at the wear marks, the find spots and the associated finds. This does not solve the mystery. This exhibition suggests some possible ideas from archaeologists, from children from Woodside School and from the sculptor Keiji Nagahiro.

As over 70 stone balls will be on display this is a unique opportunity to see one of the largest collections of these enigmatic carvings.

Spirit of Stones - Exhibition of batiks by Annabel Carey, 17 November 2003 - 19 February 2004.

Marishal Museum, University of Aberdeen, is the opening venue of a British touring exhibition of batiks by Annabel Carey.

Ms Carey is a frequent exhibitor at the Royal West of England Academy, where she was invited to participate in the Encore Exhibition in January/February 2003 and most recently was selected for the Autumn Exhibition in 2003. Her recent work on a series of acrylic paintings exploring psychological landscapes resulted in two pictures being selected by the Royal Watercolour Society for display at the C21 Exhibition (Watercolour for the 21st Century) at the Bankside Gallery, London, during July 2003.

The batiks are all of stone circles and standing stones- many of them in Scotland, including well known north-east sites such as Sunhoney, Cullerlie and Loanhead of Daviot.

The title 'Spirit of Stones' really sums up the feel of this exhibition- they are very evocative of the atmosphere which surrounds many stone circles and other prehistoric sites.

Going Home: Museums and Repatriation, 2nd November 2003 - 25th January 2004

A new exhibition at Marischal Museum marks the repatriation of a sacred head-dress to the Blood Tribe in Canada earlier this year The horned head-dress with an eagle feather trailer was identified by members of the Blood Tribe during a visit to Aberdeen in November last year, after which they submitted a request for its repatriation. For many years they had three head-dresses and had been searching for the fourth, which was known to have been lost and which was thought to have gone overseas. The University considered their request carefully and the head-dress was handed over in July this year.

This exhibition tells the story of how the head-dress was collected by an Aberdeen woman in the 1920s and how it came to be repatriated. It also includes the only opportunity to see a photograph of the head-dress, as the University agreed not to publish photographs as this would be seen as dangerous and offensive to the Blood Tribe. The exhibition concludes with a display of the variety of opinions that appeared in newspapers this year and invites visitors to leave their own comments as part of the display.

Repatriation is an important issue that museums are now facing. The exhibition includes the first showing outside Glasgow of a copy of the Lakota Ghost Dance shirt that was repatriated by Glasgow Museums in 1999. Glasgow benefited greatly from the repatriation, receiving this copy and learning much more about the Lakota Sioux. The exhibition also explores some of the other requests for repatriation from museums that have been rejected, such as the Parthenon Sculptures (the 'Elgin Marbles)' and Benin bronze heads. It also shows objects from Scotland, raising the question about whether repatriation is only an issue facing objects collected from overseas.

Hopscotch, 22 September - 7 November 2003
Hopscotch is an exhibition of games- but people are invited not just to look, but also to take part if they want - either by playing some of the games- or by sharing their memories of games.

A mixture of photographs, memories and objects from the museum collections relate the history of some of our most common games - both street games and board games.

Among the intriguing objects on display are marbles from Ancient Egypt - and a beautiful cribbage board carved of whale tusk by the Inuit and decorated with caribou and bison.

The oldest objects in the exhibition will be two Ancient Egyptian gaming pieces, dated to c1400 BC. One of the pieces is in the shape of a cat! These may have been used for the board game Senet.

The exhibition tells some of the fascinating stories of how games have travelled around the world. Some have been carried in the backpacks of soldiers or travellers, others in the memory of slaves. We learn some games from parents or grandparents, others from friends at school, or in the street.

Among the games you can play in the museum will be the Roman game Tabula (an early form of backgammon) and Mancala - a game well known in African and Arab communities- and quite compulsive when you start playing it.

The exhibition will appeal to young and old. It is open throughout the October break so hopefully lots of children will bring parents and grandparents- and have some fun.

Silent Drums Beat: an exhibition of world drums, 18th July - 15 September 2003

Do you think a museum is a quiet place? You may get a surprise if you visit Marischal Museum this summer! Silent Drums Beat is an exhibition of some of the spectacular drums from the museum's collection. Many are over a hundred years old. They have drummed for celebration, drummed for war; drummed to summon the people, drummed for dancing. These ghost drums can no longer beat but this is a far from silent exhibition - there is even a modern drum to try.

Microbiology: an exhibition in Marischal Museum, 1st July - 15th September 2003

The Exhibition has been supported by Joel Ltd., the makers of the scanning electron microscope.

Bacteria, viruses and parasites. Although small, they have dramatic effects on health. By using a Scanning Electron Microscope, medical scientists in Aberdeen are able to look at detailed images of biological material that cannot be seen through a normal microscope.

This exhibition displays a small selection from the 10,000 images that have been taken by the Biomedical scientists in the Department of Medical Microbiology. They give some idea of the range of research that is being carried out in the Faculty of Medicine and Medical Sciences in the University of Aberdeen. The photographs have been coloured to enhance the images.

Debbie Marshall, Chief Biomedical Scientist, Department of Medical Microbiology said, "When displaying these images I thought it would be interesting to involve those researchers that I have worked with on projects in the last two years to highlight their current research. It has been a very interesting time for me to be involved in all the varied work undertaken within the Faculty."

Neil Curtis, Senior Curator, Marischal Museum said "The images are both beautiful and disturbing as you can look at bacteria living on a human tongue and a louse enlarged to hundreds of times life size. It is also fascinating to see how a blot clot forms and to discover some of the medical research taking place in the University."

Walter Scott (1771-1832): Poet, Editor, Novelist, Historian
An exhibition of original books and manuscripts from the Bernard C. Lloyd Walter Scott Collection, 12 May 2003 - 30 June 2003

What can be known about the past? Walter Scott was a sceptic: he was Scotland's greatest man of letters, yet recognised that he past could not be contained in words.

This exhibition illustrates the various ways in which Scott tried to find the past - in artefacts, in the literature of past eras, in archives and collections, in imaginative reconstructions of the past in poetry and fiction and in formal histories.

In 2002 the University of Aberdeen purchased The Bernard C. Lloyd Walter Scott Collection with the help of a generous grant of £209,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund

This exhibition has been mounted to mark the coming of this magnificent collection to Aberdeen, where it enhances the University's superb library holdings. Aberdeen is the world's centre for the study of Walter Scott.

The exhibition has been arranged by David Hewitt of the Walter Scott Research Centre.