‘What do you need baby bottle warmers for?’, our finance orders guy asked. Well, today we’re trying to recreate how Gwen John made her signature chalky, bubbly ground for her later oil paintings. Pungent smells abound as the rabbit skin glue heats up…

Detail of a work by our very own Paul Emmanuel. Will be featuring in the upcoming Valleys show.Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales StFagansConservation NatHistConservation National Museum Art

Gorgeous #Zobole in our upcoming Valleys show Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales National Museum Art NatHistConservation StFagansConservation

Friday afternoon and taking the Henry vacuum for a final spruce of our newly refurbished botany store. Strange to have such a shiny and clean store space... Now to plan returning all the wonders to their new home!
#CollectionAccess

Is that a preventative conservator lurking amongst the dinosaurs? The fabulous Gwen giving the space a bit of a spruce up!

Wall of wonderful portraits of Crawshay workers by Thomas Chapman co served and crisply hung for the upcoming Valleys show..StFagansConservation NatHistConservation National Museum Art Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales

Silent disco in the studio #sculpture StFagansConservation NatHistConservation Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales National Museum Art

Beautiful working industrial collection at the #NationalCollectionsCentre Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales StFagansConservation NatHistConservation

A strange painting with an unusual subject: the good and bad murderers/thiefs are being led to their crucifixion.

By Abraham Janssens, 1611. He liked his tuches, my friend Andrew would say. 🙂

Diphylleia grayi, the beautiful “skeleton flower” that turns transparent when it rains and reverts to white when dry.

Colour/paint people - help! I’m trying to contact Lefranc archives in Le Mans (owned by @ColArt), and hopefully access them, but am having trouble finding any contact details. Rebuffed by customer relations help desk. This is for research into Gwen John’s painting materials.

Our conservators and technicians have been working on this powerful wall forming part of our new #Valleys exhibition ❤️ Thank you. Amgueddfa Cymru | Museum Wales StFagansConservation NatHistConservation

Blue tit singing on a cold early morning.

You can even see its song in the air.

[📷 Mikhail Kalinin]

I have always loved this #Rembrandt sketch which I shared on social media 11 years ago. It popped up in a reminder this morning. Since then I have adopted a child. Now I really get this little sketch. ❤️ The tenderness with quite a thick crayon is amazing.

The Milton Brooch is a remarkable example of Anglo-Saxon craftsmanship. It was probably made in Kent in the 7th century and is decorated with cloisonné set garnets, panels of gold with beaded-filigree interlace, and domed settings of shell.   ⁠
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It was found in 1832 in a…

Sadly it’s a bit knocked about but how about this for a lineup? #photograph #fashion

Todays #Archive30 comes from the National Library of Scotland -a collection of recipes books and leaflets from the First and Second World Wars, designed to help people adapt to wartime rationing. Shout-out to Potato Pete! 🥔
#ArchiveCollection ARA Scotland
Ref: GFB.1

Can a vase of flowers be haunted? This one is. 1646, by Tomás Yepes, whose day has been today.

Virgin of the Foresaken on her altar, 1644, covered from top to toe with gifts from those she has helped. Amazing image by still-life painter Tomas Yepes, whose day is today.

Spied in the #Archaeologyconservation lab. We certainly make our materials last.