I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty excited to be able to visit museums again when it’s safe to venture into those great institutions.
But until we can all do that, we’ll have to settle for fun and interesting online content. And the Yorkshire Museum in England is doing a great job in that department.
Over the past several months, the folks there have started “curator battles” online where they ask other museums to show the most interesting objects from their collections.
Let’s take a look at how museums strutted their stuff on Twitter.
1. That is very cool.
I’d call that a Star Object.
IT’S THE #CURATORBATTLE GRAND FINALE! 💥
⭐️ Today’s theme is #StarObject! ⭐️
Our star is the York Helmet. This 8th century object is the most finely constructed and complete Anglo-Saxon helmet in all of Europe! It was a status symbol worn by Northumbrian royalty!
BEAT THAT!💥 pic.twitter.com/gfVfiEQViR
— Yorkshire Museum (@YorkshireMuseum) July 24, 2020
2. From sheep and cattle bones.
Unique flooring.
We’ll make no bones about it, this is a #StarObject!⭐️
This unusual flooring, dating from the 1600s, is made from sheep & cattle bones. 12 of the 17 examples of this flooring in the UK have been found in #Oxfordshire.
This is a bone-a-ifide treasure!
☠️??♻️#CURATORBATTLE pic.twitter.com/Kt1zQo63M7— Museum of Oxford (@MuseumofOxford) July 24, 2020
3. A big score.
Viking history.
I’d say a Viking hoard of 617 coins, 67 pieces of silver jewellery & silver ingots inside a silver-gilt cup is a #StarObject Need more convincing? OK. How about it being the most significant Viking hoard discovered in 150 years! #CURATORBATTLE #BOOM https://t.co/GmSBRheA8p pic.twitter.com/2StneS6wbt
— Rebecca Griffiths (@Bexx_FLO) July 24, 2020
4. This is so cool.
What an amazing piece of history.
We offer up one of the National Motor Museum’s most iconic Land Speed Record-breaking cars, the stunning 1929 Golden Arrow. It reached a land speed record of 231.446mph.
Looking forward to doing battle again! ?#CURATORBATTLE #StarObject pic.twitter.com/MCTD40Zb7u
— Beaulieu_Hants (@Beaulieu_Hants) July 24, 2020
5. Wow! Read this caption!
That is pretty incredible.
Discovered by the Keating family in 2012, exceptionally well-preserved, this 290-305 million-year-old sail-back “Superstar” from the Carboniferous Period has the potential to unearth a whole new level of understanding about Nova Scotia’s ancient world. #CURATORBATTLE #StarObject pic.twitter.com/7QtiEOkBe0
— Nova Scotia Museum (@NS_Museum) July 24, 2020
6. That is quite a table.
Must be worth a fortune…
⭐️Our star is this beautiful table⭐️#StarObject #CURATORBATTLE
Johann Christian Neuber (1736–1808)
« Table de Teschen »
1779@MuseeLouvre
Trésor national
© RMN-GP (musée du Louvre) / Stéphane Maréchalle pic.twitter.com/65aj6xLdgr— Louvre-Lens (@MuseeLouvreLens) July 24, 2020
7. Dippy the Dino!
Looking good!
Our #StarObject has got to be @Dippy_the_Dino! But we can’t forget about our holotype T. rex! pic.twitter.com/iwbUOobElo
— Carnegie Museum of Natural History (@CarnegieMNH) July 24, 2020
8. The oldest ball.
Of all time!
We didn’t even have to think about this one! Our #StarObject is the world’s oldest football. It was kicked into the rafters of Stirling Castle in the 1540s when footballs in Scotland were known as ‘fut ballis’. It remained there until its discovery in 1981. ⚽️?#CURATORBATTLE pic.twitter.com/j9DwZFZ4QW
— The Stirling Smith (@smithmuseum) July 24, 2020
9. The world’s oldest dress.
Get a load of that!
Well, we do have the world’s oldest dress…
In fact, the Tarkhan Dress is the oldest woven garment ever discovered. Found in a tomb in 1913, it was thought to be a mere “pile of linen” until it was cleaned and its importance discovered in the 1970s. https://t.co/HyYX7bpsoz pic.twitter.com/iCQn1Th8y7
— Petrie Museum (@PetrieMuseEgypt) July 24, 2020
10. One of a kind.
No doubt about that.
We have precious paintings, swords, armour and objects of great beauty, but for most visitors our #StarObject is this surviving, very rare #17thCentury felt hat which belonged to Oliver Cromwell… ?#CURATORBATTLE pic.twitter.com/P7nGruxZhb
— The Cromwell Museum (@MuseumCromwell) July 24, 2020
11. Sherman tank.
Very impressive.
Here in Austin, Texas we won’t be reopening anytime soon, but when we are able to have visitors back the #StarObject they most want to see is our M3A4 Sherman tank. Whether inside the museum on exhibit or out as part of our reenactments it never fails to impress. #CURATORBATTLE pic.twitter.com/9ZYiApLoM7
— TMFM (@TMFMuseum) July 24, 2020
Now we want to hear from all the readers out there!
In the comments, tell us about your favorite museums and your favorite artifacts that you’ve seen throughout the years.
We look forward to hearing from you!