National Museums Liverpool Blog - Tuesday, January 16, 2007

While David Beckham is making a splash in the US with his LA Galaxy ‘soccer’ antics, World Museum Liverpool has itself been subject to a bit of an American invasion.

Liverpool Centurions AFC is our local community American Football Club – and they’ve been down to LoveSport to give us a bit of taster.

On their website, Centurions' chairman and fullback Jon Askew (pictured right) explains that, “Visitors to the display will get the chance try out at Flag Football, which is a great introduction to the sport”.

Apparently flag football is a non-contact version of the game - which is handy if you don’t fancy getting knocked over by this pair of bruisers. Joking aside, I am assured that the Centurions are a charming bunch of fellows who love their sport and want to spread the word about the game.

They’ll be back at World Museum Liverpool for another taster session on 24th January from 10am until 2pm. 

In the meantime, I am relishing the start of the rugby league season. Centurions of another variety, Leigh, are visiting Knowsley Road on Friday night for a friendly opener against the Saints. The match is also Sean Long’s testimonial and sees old team favourite’s Chris Joynt, Tommy Martyn and Paul Newlove back in the fold for the occasion. Can’t wait!

Conservators are busy constructing the enormous model of Lutyens' cathedral at the Walker Art Gallery. Pictured are the three sections of the dome waiting to be the crowning glory of this amazing architectural model - and you thought Blue Peter's Tracey Island was impressive! The exhibition, The Cathedral that never was opens on 27 January, I'll be keeping you updated on the model's progress.

Patrick Caulfield's 'Still Life: Autumn Fashion' is one of the most popular pieces in the Walker's 20th century collection and is currently on display in Room 13 at the gallery.

The excellent Patrick Caulfield collection display at Tate Liverpool (not one of our venues) finishes early next month (4 February 2007), images of all fifty two works are available on the Tate website.

To mark the end of the display, Marco Livingstone will be giving a talk in the display space next Wednesday (full details). In 1981 Marco Livingstone selected works for the Walker Art Gallery's Patrick Caulfield retrospective.

We take it for granted sometimes that everyone understands which venues we represent at National Museums Liverpool, but personal experience suggests it can be confusing. It's even more confusing when we occasionally highlight events and exhibitions at other Liverpool museums and galleries on this blog.

I'm creating this post so that when I mention a Merseyside gallery or museum, I can include a link to this explanation.

We are - Walker Art Gallery, World Museum Liverpool, Museum of Liverpool, Merseyside Maritime Museum, International Slavery Museum, Sudley House, Lady Lever Art Gallery, HM Customs & Excise National Museum and National Conservation Centre.

We're not (but we like) - Tate Liverpool, FACT, the Beatles Story, Open Eye Gallery, University of Liverpool Art Gallery, Greenland Street, View Two Gallery, Almiro Gallery, 52 Roscoe Street, Williamson Art Gallery and Museum, Birkenhead Priory, Wirral Museum, Renew Rooms, Alima Centre gallery, National Wildflower Centre, 59 Rodney Street, British Lawnmower Museum, Western Approaches, Spaceport, Bluecoat Arts Centre, Atkinson Art Gallery, Blue Planet Aquarium, South Bohemia Art Gallery, Ellesmere Port Boat Museum, World of Glass, EggSpace, Mendips, The Artfinder's Gallery, Arena, Dot-art Gallery, Cornerstone Gallery, Cube Noir, Museum Man, Liverpool Academy of Arts, The Royal Standard, Williamson Tunnels.

Hope I've not left too many off the list (and we'll look at Prescot Museum another day..).

A subterranean Liverpool landmark celebrates its 50th anniversary today. Since 1957 generations of clubbers have trailed down the stairs for a night out at the Cavern. I myself spent many happy hours on its dancefloor as a student (as well as several not so happy hours in the seemingly neverending queue for the ladies).

The Cavern is of course most famous as the venue to see a certain local band at the start of their career in the 1960s. The  Beatles played at the Cavern on at least 292 occasions, their first recorded appearance being 9 February 1961, and their final one on 3 August 1963.

Among recent additions to the collections of the Museum of Liverpool is the Cavern membership card from 1964 pictured above, which belonged to John Marsh of Huyton. You can't see this card on display yet, but fans can enjoy a lot of the museum's other Beatles memorabilia in our Beatles online exhibition, or just have fun with the Beatles games.

A mystery that has intrigued many local historians is the exact location of the original Cavern club, which was filled in when the venue closed in 1973. The reincarnated Cavern was rebuilt using the original bricks in a different part of Mathew Street in the 1980s. I'm not sure how helpful this is, but another membership card from the museum's collection has these directions inside. Frustratingly, I don't think the map is drawn to scale though.

Today is the anniversary of the day that polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton found the magnetic south pole in 1909. You'd think that after returning from an adventure like that he'd just want to stay at home with a warm mug of cocoa, or tick off the 'visit south pole' box on his travel wish list and start planning a cruise round the Caribbean to thaw out. He obviously wasn't the sunbathing type though, as he led several more expeditions to the Antarctic after this.

One of the prized documents in the collection of the Customs and Excise Museum is a Master's Declaration that announces the outward journey of his ill-fated last expedition in 1921. Sadly, Ernest Shackleton did not reach the Antarctic on that occasion as he died of a heart attack on South Georgia Island in January 1922.

Another famous explorer who has been in the news lately is Captain Robert Scott, whose moving last letters to his family will go on display at the Scott Polar Research Institute Museum in Cambridge tomorrow. The Customs and Excise Museum also have a letter from Captain Scott in the collections, that he wrote to request exemption from tax for the ship Terra Nova for an expedition in 1910. Nowhere near as poignant as the incredible letters to his loved ones, but still an interesting side of polar exploration that you wouldn't normally see.

What is the parent comet of the Lyrids? Are the Andromadids extinct yet? What's the hourly rate of the Delta Aquarids? Do the Taurids end before the Leonids begin? If any of these questions have been troubling you the answers are now at hand with our new annual meteor shower chart from the staff at the Planetarium.

Good news for everyone who has missed the old Floating Palaces gallery at the Merseyside Maritime Museum, which closed for refurbishment in the autumn. A brand new gallery featuring the Titanic, Lusitania and Empress of Ireland disasters is currently being installed on the first floor of the museum. It has now been confirmed that the gallery will open on Saturday 10 February.

Being a nosey type of a person, I had a sneak preview of the new gallery when I was in the museum last week and must say it's looking fantastic so far. When the gallery opens visitors will be able to walk all the way round the Titanic model and see it from all sides for the first time. Most of the other favourite obects from the old gallery will be on display, along with some new items.

One exciting addition will be video footage that Steve Rigby of Warrington, the honorary secretary of the British Titanic Society, took of his submarine trip to the Titanic wreck, two and a half miles deep, in 2001. Visitors will be able to listen to a recording of Steve describing his amazing experiences on the trip.

Liverpool's best art blog Art in Liverpool just got better with the creation of the Liverpool Arts and Culture forum. Register to join the discussions, post event announcements, classifieds, job vacancies and courses.

The 19th century is a period that fascinates me, Stephen Guy, and it was a particularly exciting time in Liverpool.

Three remarkable views of Liverpool in Merseyside Maritime Museum’s Art & the Sea gallery show the port at three stages of its development in the halcyon years of the century.

'A View of Liverpool about 1815' by John Jenkinson is seen from between New Brighton and Seacombe. My great-great-grandfather Henry Guy was a 17-year-old in Liverpool at that time. He was a bookbinder and later a labourer who married three times before his death in 1864.

A new era dawned in 1815 with the end of the Napoleonic wars, leaving Britain the unchallenged master of the seas for nearly a century. Liverpool was among the ports that benefited most.

Jenkinson shows Liverpool framed between two groups of sailing ships. At this time the river was still a great source of food - a boy with a dog walks with a man carrying a shrimping net.

'The Port of Liverpool 1836' by Samuel Walters is a finely-detailed view from the river on a stormy day. It is so realistic that you can almost feel the howling wind coming out of the canvas.

Several sailing ships and a rowing boat are struggling against a northerly gale during the high waters of a spring tide. A lone steamship can be seen in the middle distance. The long wall of Princes Dock, built in 1821, has a forest of masts behind it.

'Liverpool Landing Stage 1893' by WF Preston is an evening view of the Pier Head waterfront with a ferry about to leave for Woodside.

This was a panorama well known to my grandfather, Roger Bolland Guy, who had married May Kendrick in 1891. They had nine children, my father George being the youngest. Roger ended his working life as a ceremonial porter at Liverpool Town Hall.

The landing stage with its covered walkways was the largest floating structure in the world when it was built in 1876. It was designed to float so that ferries and other passenger ships could berth at any stage of the tide.

The stage existed until the 1960s and I remember it very well with its large crowds of commuters, excursionists and holidaymakers.

Also featured in the painting are the colonnaded public baths, demolished in 1907.

Merseyside Maritime Museum is open seven days a week, admission free.  A new Maritime Tale appears every Saturday in the Liverpool Echo.

Only a month ago, Sylvester Stallone was present as items from
the Rocky movie series were donated to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington. I nearly blogged the event, dreaming about how wonderful it would be if ‘Rocky’ came to World Museum Liverpool. In my reverie, we were to invite him to preview the LoveSport exhibition, gets lots of lovely pictures of him training and shadow boxing and of course, insist that he re-enact his famous victorious run to the top of the steps. In the end I dismissed the blog post thinking I was probably straying just a bit too far into the realms of fantasy.

Today I wake up to the news that Sly has apparently been hanging around at Everton FC this weekend! If only he had known about the wonderful day out I had planned for him. Mr Stallone, if you’re still out there ...?

While I was browsing the Treasures of American History exhibition where the Rocky items can be seen, I also came across some amazing iconic items such as Dorothy’s ruby slippers and the Scarecrow costume from the Wizard of Oz, R2-D2 and C-3PO from Return of the Jedi, Kermit the Frog and Muhammad Ali’s  gloves to name but a few. Oh, and the hat that Abraham Lincoln was wearing when he was assassinated. I can't help being impressed.

Liverpool commuters may have seen our winter online exhibition reviewed in the Metro this morning. Possibly the first time one of our online exhibitions has been reviewed in the press, it's great to see it in there - especially as we got 3 stars!

One comment the reviewer Steve Pill made was that he would like to be able to inspect Maurice Cockrill's abstract painting 'Winter' more closely. Well we aim to please, so have now added a 'zoomify' option for both Winter and the other painting in the online exhibition, Snowdrifts by Frederick Waugh.

If, like Steve, you enjoyed the 'cultural fix' of this online exhibition, you'll be pleased to hear that another one is planned for February, so watch this space for further details.

Today award winning author Andrea Levy was at the Merseyside Maritime Museum to launch this year's Liverpool Reads project. There she met children from Windsor Street School who were taking part in a Brouhaha International drumming session.

The annual Liverpool Reads event has joined forces with several other reading initiatives across the country to form Small Island Read 2007. It's hoped that tens of thousands of people all over the country will be reading Andrea's Orange prize winning novel, Small Island. The novel was chosen because not only is it a fab read (yes, I have read it) but also because it looks at the experiences of Jamaican migrants living in post-war Britain and explores highly relevant themes for 2007; the bicentenary of the abolition of the British slave trade.

Not only can residents of the participating cities get their hands on a copy of Small Island, but there is also a guide to the novel (which you can download from the project site), and a book for younger readers; Benjamin Zephaniah's Refugee Boy. Check out the website for details.

Realise I told you last week that the dig was starting on 4th January but there was a bit of a delay, so today is officially day 4 and already we can see something. Archaeologist, Mark Adams, fills us in (as opposed to excavating the dock...never mind)

"Removal of the tarmac to expose archaeological deposits has continued this week despite frequent bouts of heavy rain and strong winds. Much of the upper surface of the entrance lock has now been exposed and some of the iron fittings for the lock gates are also visible. Work on revealing the surrounding quaysides is now in progress and has already found structures such as bases for cranes and basements belonging to dock buildings."

You can see another photo from today, plus other dig photos, on our Flickr page.
Information on the Museum of Liverpool project is on our main site.

I’ve been watching with interest as a story about the possibility of Ringo Starr’s former house possibly becoming part of the Museum of Liverpool has trotted around the globe and back again. It’s been reported in destinations as far away as Australia to Los Angeles. I’m always amazed by the pull of Beatles stories in the news which just seem to run and run.

I’m told that,

‘We are hopeful that we will be able to give a home to the childhood house of Ringo Starr. Negotiations are underway with all parties involved with the house and there are still many details to be worked out but it would make a fantastic feature in the Museum of Liverpool and would be hugely popular with visitors”.

If you want to know more about the development of Museum of Liverpool there's lots more on our main website.

I was slightly confused when I spotted the 24 Hour Museum trail
‘Celebrating 100 years of Peter Rabbit’, as the anniversary was actually a few years ago. Then I realised that it must has been dusted off and updated to coincide with the movie release, 'Miss Potter’ starring Hollywood starlet Reneé Zellweger and Ewan McGregor.

I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to highlight our own archive webpages
which were created to support a former exhibition, Beatrix Potter’s Garden. They provide a bit of a potted history (pardon the pun) of the lady herself.

The ever-popular author and illustrator is of course indelibly linked with the Lake District where she found much of the inspiration for her charming stories in the natural world. But it was in museums that Beatrix developed her observational and scientific talents, visiting the Natural History Museum and other institutions to examine specimens in closer detail. She was also a regular visitor to galleries and this influenced her development as an artist.

You can find out more about Beatrix Potter through the National Trust who are the custodians of several Potter properties.  If you want to find out more about the movie and the locations used for filming, you could  download this special ‘Movie Map’. Other useful links for Potter-heads include the official Peter Rabbit site and The World of Beatrix Potter Attraction.

Karen introduced our head of archaeology Rob Philpott on the blog last week in a post about the excavation of the site for the new Museum of Liverpool. Today was the first official day of the dig, so I donned a hard hat and high visibility jacket to visit Rob and his team in action on the site.

Although relatively little of the tarmac covering the site has been removed so far, the team have already found the entrance to the original Manchester Dock. While I was there volunteer Anis Price uncovered the metal from the top of the dock gates, which she is pointing out to Rob in the photograph above. Some original cobblestones had also been exposed and we were starting to see the base of settings for cranes and other dock machinery.

As the dig progresses the team will be digging up the infill from behind the dock wall that dates back to the 1780s when the Manchester Dock was created, so could unearth ceramics or other interesting finds from the time. Rob will be keeping the blog posted about any discoveries and news.

You can see a Flickr slideshow of photos from the first day here.

A few weeks ago I told you about the new BBC period drama, Lilies, some of which was filmed at our venues. Well the first episode of this 8 part series is broadcast at 9pm on BBC1 on Friday, so curl up with the last of your Christmas chocolate and get location spotting.

If you missed the fireworks at the Walker on Friday night you can check out some photos on the Daily Pete website (this isn't one of them - this was taken by Karen Young from the press office).

Liverpool has seen remarkable times and for me, Stephen Guy, there is added interest because I or my family and ancestors lived through most of them.

A small seaside town is clustered around a romantic-looking castle while more than 20 sailing ships of all sizes criss-cross the choppy waters. This is Liverpool in 1680 painted by an unknown artist. It is one of the Merseyside Maritime Museum’s fascinating series of paintings portraying Liverpool over more than 300 years of phenomenal growth.

This early painting also interests me because it was about the time my Guy ancestors moved, probably from the Melling area, to live and work in the growing town of Liverpool. Many other families were being drawn from the surrounding countryside as the port grew.

Liverpool in 1680 is the earliest known painting of Liverpool with the medieval castle dominating the town named after the Pool, a creek that was later filled in. The castle, demolished in the early 1700s, stood on the site of the Victoria Monument in Derby Square.

In the centre is Water Street and to the left is the Tower built about 1540, the former town house of the Earls of Derby. The only building still recognisable is St Nicholas’s parish church which has been altered and rebuilt over the centuries.

Trade was expanding rapidly and the estuary is full of local river and coastal craft as well as large sea-going vessels. These larger vessels were probably preparing to depart for north America.

Forty-five years later Liverpool has changed almost beyond recognition. A Prospect of Liverpool 1725 (you can see it on our main site) by an unknown artist is an imaginary aerial view. The main feature is the town’s first dock built in 1715 which can be seen on the right of the picture.  A large brick building at the head of the dock is the Customs House of 1722. Further back a big flag is flying over the Town Hall and Exchange. St Nicholas’s also features. In the river a group of vessels fires a salute, a common practice at this period.

It is likely that this remarkable view was commissioned by a wealthy Liverpool citizen. The painting oozes confidence and optimism – even the masts and spars of the ships in dock are at jaunty angles.

Next week we look at the growth of Liverpool from the end of the Napoleonic wars to the late Victorian era.

There is more on the painting, Liverpool in 1680 on our main site, as well as desktop wallpaper of this fascinating piece. There are also many other maritime views of Liverpool to examine, with dates ranging from 1680-1893.

A new Maritime Tale appears every Saturday in the Liverpool Echo.

Audio downloads of the Lady Lever and Walker Art Galleries' December artwork of the month talks are now online.

At the Walker, Curator of British paintings Alex Kidson took a look at Henry Fuseli's 'The Death of Oedipus' (mp3/transcript/links). Fuseli's painting portrays a scene from the Sophocles play 'Oedipus at Colonus'.

At the Lady Lever, Dr Paul O'Keeffe gave a seasonal talk on 'The Annunciation' by Edward Burne-Jones (mp3/transcript/links). Paul discusses buying a bible and concordance, the connections between Eve and Mary, original sin, the V&A exhibition 'Renaissance domestic life in Italy', the model and her famous daughters, the history of the Grosvenor Gallery, Gilbert and Sullivan's 'Patience', Oscar Wilde, William Morris and Clause 8 of the Trust deed of the Lady Lever collection.

I popped into the Walker before to see the Sam Taylor-Wood video of David Beckham and admire his perfectly manicured thumbnail. I wonder if he had his nails done specially for the video or if they're always in that good condition?

On the way in I couldn't help notice some fencing and strange tent-like structures going up around the Steble fountain opposite the gallery's entrance. These are all part of the preparations for tomorrow evening's firework display from the gallery's roof. Originally scheduled for new year's eve, until the weather got too windy, the fireworks can now be seen from 7.30pm tomorrow.

The fireworks officially kick off the city's 800th anniversary year of celebrations, so do come to see them and wish Liverpool a happy birthday if you're in the area.

We may all be back at work again after Christmas but the party spirit is set to continue at World Museum Liverpool, where a series of events are planned over the next 2 weekends to celebrate the Arabic festival of Eid al-Adha.

Eid al-Adha is an Islamic period of thanksgiving which also marks the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. It is celebrated by families and friends of all ages wearing best clothes, giving presents, eating and playing.

This morning Najib Al-Hakimi came in to drum up some support for the festival, with the help of museum staff Enes Senussi and Alex Shears. Najib, from the Liverpool Arabic Centre, has co-ordinated the events, along with the Merseyside Yemini Community Association.

The events start with a party at the museum on Saturday 6 January from 12.30-4.30pm, featuring music from Manchester's Al-Bawady Band and Sheffield's Al-Nawares Band, traditional Yemini dancing, moderm dance workshops, drama, henna hand and face painting, a clown and much more.

The following weekend the Arabic Cultural Foundation have organised activities in the Weston Discovery Centre from 12.30-3.30pm on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 January. For more details see the What's On listings for World Museum Liverpool.

I'm afraid that after the last two informative posts, I'm going to lower the tone somewhat. I've been looking for David Beckham fansites to tell them about the Sam Taylor-Wood portrait on display at the Walker when I came across this David Beckham dressing-up dolly.

I expect it is supposed to be for children but couldn't resist sharing it with you - not least because you can also dress up a whole load of other celebrities from Johnny Depp to Paris Hilton. I have to admit though, I was very disappointed with Bjork's wardrobe selection - not a patch on the real thing.

You can also make a dressing up doll of yourself called a MeDoll but they don't have any ample dollies, only skinny minnies. Mine came out looking like Carmen Electra. How I love the web.

Note from Karen: introducing Rob Philpott, head of archaeology at National Museums Liverpool. He'll be providing regular updates on progress at the dig which is about to begin at the waterfront. If all this is totally new to you and you've no idea what is happening at the dock you can read-up on the main site.

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Tomorrow archaeologists from NML's Field Archaeology Unit are starting work on the site of the new Museum of Liverpool. The new museum will be built on the Liverpool waterfront on an area of land which was reclaimed from the estuary in the late 18th century to construct some of Liverpool's vast sequence of docks. We will be working in advance of construction to ensure that the remains of the two docks affected by the scheme, Manchester Dock and Chester Basin, are fully recorded. As the top of the docks lie close to the surface, we will first be removing the tarmac surface to expose the dock walls and quaysides. These will be mapped and photographed and a detailed plan made.

There will be an update next week, plus details of finds as we uncover them.

Rob Philpott.