‘The Staffordshire Hoard – Unveiling the story so far…’
We thought this new film from History West Midlands would be of interest to our followers! Here is the press release…
In this new film from History West Midlands we find out about the first stage of conservation work on the Staffordshire Hoard. We take a closer look at the individual pieces and see how the collection is beginning to be pieced together. We have the chance to find out what has been learnt about this period of Anglo-Saxon history and the secrets that the Staffordshire Hoard has unearthed so far.
The film is available to view on the History West Midlands website:
http://historywm.com/films/
You can also view it directly here:
More information on the Staffordshire Hoard
Since the discovery of the Staffordshire Hoard in 2009, there has been a three year process of cleaning, conservation and study led by Birmingham Museums Trust and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery. To complete this first phase of research the entire team were brought together and the collection laid out at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, meaning that it is the first and likely only time that it will be seen together as one collection before it is split up and sent to various museums.
The Staffordshire Hoard is the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found and a team of more than 30 experts have pain-stakingly cleaned, conserved and restored each one of the pieces. We now have the chance to see the intricate craftsmanship and the astonishing skill that went into these beautiful pieces more than 1300 years ago, in the Kingdom of Mercia, the region which is now known as The Midlands.
Dr David Symons, Curator, BMAG
“The most astonishing thing for all of us who’ve been involved with the hoard has been seeing the incredible artwork that these people are capable of achieving. If nothing else I think it should kill this idea of the ‘Dark Ages’ stone dead…the skill that’s being shown here is literally astonishing.”
In October, a new gallery will open at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery which will have more than 300 items of the Staffordshire Hoard on permanent display.
