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Melsonby Hoard saved for the nation
One of the largest Iron Age metalwork hoards ever found in the UK has been acquired by the Yorkshire Museum following a major grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, alongside public and other donations.
The collection of more than 800 artefacts, many of which relate to 2,000-year-old chariots or wagons, was discovered by a metal-detectorist near the village of Melsonby, North Yorkshire, in 2021 (see CA 423; some of its contents are pictured above). It was excavated by Durham University archaeologists, with financial support from Historic England and expert advice from the British Museum.
The hoard was independently valued according to the Treasure Act 1996, and after receiving £192,096 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, £54,000 from the public via an online crowdfunder, and a further £20,000 in other donations, the Yorkshire Museum has been able to purchase it, saving the unique assemblage from private sale and securing it for public display and future research.
Further fundraising is now under way to help conserve the fragile finds, prepare them for display, and support specialist research that will shed new light on the region’s Iron Age past. For more details, see http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/save-the-melsonby-hoard.
Ancient Egyptian handprint discovered in Cambridge
A 4,000-year-old handprint has been identified on a clay ‘soul house’ during preparations for an upcoming exhibition at Cambridge University’s Fitzwilliam Museum.
Often shaped like buildings with an open courtyard, soul houses were placed in some ancient Egyptian tombs to hold food offerings. This example, however, bears a tangible trace of a living individual, as someone left a complete handprint on the model’s underside (pictured below), probably when carrying it out of the workshop to dry before firing it in a kiln.
The object will be on display in Made in Ancient Egypt, an exhibition that focuses not on familiar pharaohs, but on ordinary craftspeople – who they were, how they saw themselves, and how they were viewed by their contemporaries – drawing on written records, artefacts, and scientific analysis. The exhibition will run from 3 October 2025 until 12 April 2026; see http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/plan-your-visit/exhibitions/made-in-ancient-egypt for more details.
Reimagining Worthing Museum
Worthing Museum has launched a £35,000 fundraising campaign to redisplay its collections of more than 50,000 artefacts within a new, interactive archaeology gallery.
As the largest museum in West Sussex, Worthing Museum has been a major repository for archaeological finds from across the south coast for over 100 years. Now, an online crowdfunder aims to bring its displays fully up to date, with new lighting, innovative interpretations, immersive experiences, and technology that will help to bring both ancient stories and more recent social histories to life. For more information, see http://www.justgiving.com/campaign/reimaginingwm.
New exhibitions
Hidden Hoards & Fascinating Finds!
Clitheroe Castle Museum
Until March 2026
https://tiny.cc/ClitheroeCastleMuseum
The Norton Disney Dodecahedron: its discovery and excavation
University of Nottingham Museum
Until 18 January 2026
http://www.lakesidearts.org.uk/exhibition/the-norton-disney-dodecahedron-exhibition
Gladiators of Britain
Grosvenor Museum, Chester
20 September 2025 – 25 January 2026
http://www.britishmuseum.org/gladiators
Last chance to see
Celebrating Scotland’s Landscape
Stanley Mills, Perth
Until 28 September 2025
http://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a-place/whats-on
Ice Age Art Now
Cliffe Castle Museum, Keighley
Until 14 September 2025
http://www.bradfordmuseums.org/event/ice-age-art-now
The World of King James VI and I
National Galleries of Scotland: Portrait, Edinburgh
Until 14 September 2025
http://www.nationalgalleries.org/exhibition/ world-king-james-vi-and-i
