National Museums Liverpool Blog - Thursday, May 14, 2009

Yesterday I was able to witness a ceremony to mark the returning of Australian indigenous human remains that had been in our collections since 1948. The remains are being returned as they have strong cultural, spiritual and religious significance to Australian indigenous communities. You can see more photos of the ceremony on our Returning to Australia Flickr set.

Representatives from The Ngarrindjeri (meaning The People) had come over from Australia to perform the ceremony. Seeing them with their fantastically painted faces was a pretty amazing experience in itself. Their presence definitely caused a stir outside the World Museum, with a large crowd gathering to see what was happening! The ceremony began with Mr Major Sumner burning eucalyptus branches, which he carried around the crowd and fanned with a large feather. He then raised three boomarangs into the air and touched them to the ground while speaking in his native dialect. Using the boomerangs he also performed a dance involving hitting them together while singing.

Mr Sumner also spoke to the crowd, saying that he was thinking of his ancestors and that we should also think about ours, whose "spirits are in this land". He also said how it was fitting that he was taking the remains from this "land by the water" to his land, which was also by the water. The Ngarrindjeri is a group of 18 clans or lakinyeri who speak similar dialects and have family connections around the lower Murray River, western Fleurieu Peninsula and Coorong, South Australia.

This is the first of the remains of three individuals being returned to Australia. The remains will be kept in a keeping place at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra and will be given the culturally-appropriate care needed. Eventually they may be buried if returned to their original communities.

Swishing and searching for cool vintage clothes is very popular right now, but who would have thought that celebrated poet Roger McGough would be into recycling clothes!

Last week Roger, who is himself part of Liverpool’s musical heritage, lent the World Museum a unique item to adorn the walls of our massive music exhibition, The Beat Goes On. This unusual item is in fact a pair of trousers; but not just any trousers! They once belonged to Roger’s fellow Scaffold member Mike McCartney’s brother Paul, a member of another little-known band from Liverpool; The Beatles. (You may have heard of them, they were around a bit in the 60s.)

Roger told us how he came to be the proud owner of the trousers:

“I was friends with Mike McCartney at a time when I began teaching in local schools. It was obvious that I needed to smarten up and make an effort at work in order to set an example to the pupils, and Mike suggested I have some of his brother’s cast offs."

"I’m pleased they are going to be displayed somewhere for all to enjoy and The Beat Goes On is the perfect setting. It’s strange to think that when I used to wear them, the thought never crossed my mind that my mate’s brother’s trousers would one day be hung on the wall of a museum!”

They were also the inspiration behind a poem entitled 'To Macca’s Trousers', which is also on display alongside the trousers. The poem describes how Roger went from wearing the trousers on nights out in the 60s, to finding them packed up in a suitcase of old clothes in his attic years later. Here's the first verse for you:

You were part of a suit that Paul handed down to his brother.
High-buttoned Italian style, circa ‘Please Please Me’
The jacket fitted but you were too short in the leg
so Michael passed you on to me.
On Saturday night we went to the disco
and although we looked cool on the dance-floor
it didn’t seem right. Greater things you were meant for.
So I hung you in the wardrobe and awaited the call
‘Hello mate, can I have me trousers back? It’s Paul’

'To Macca’s Trousers' is also part of a new collection of Roger’s poetry being published this June by Penguin Books, entitled 'That Awkward Age'. The collection is a powerful testament to the miraculous in the everyday, describing one-off chance encounters, embarrassing questions and small wonders, as Roger resolves – and fails – to live every day as if it were his last. 

We hope Paul won't be asking for the trousers back too soon!

Update 15/5/2009: Please note that this object will temporarily be removed from display from 22 May until early June.

Alison Cornmell, press assistant at NML in charge of Sound and Vision at the National Conservation Centre writes:

Do you consider yourself to have a unique and quirky style? If so The National Conservation Centre is offering people like you the chance to celebrate your own individual style in a fantastic fashion competition, Picture This!

This competition takes inspiration from Sound and Vision: Music and Fashion, photographed by Francesco Mellina, Liverpool, 1978-82 on display until 31 August 2009 at the National Conservation Centre.

Sound and Vision captures the late 70s to the early 80s in Liverpool, a pivotal point when music and fashion merged to create new sounds and styles. This sub-culture developed their own style and fashion creations making themselves into New Romantics, Rockabillies and Punks.

This competition asks you if you have the same flair for fashion as the people pictured in the exhibition. The person judged to have the most distinctive and individual style will have their picture displayed in the exhibition for its duration: the perfect opportunity to be part of an exhibition documenting the past’s creative look and prove that Liverpool still has a imaginative and innovative style!

So why not pop along to the National Conservation Centre and pick up an application form in the Sound and Vision exhibition, to book your slot for one of the sessions. Be quick – entries must be submitted by tomorrow and places are limited!

Francesco Mellina will photograph all successful entrants over two sessions on Wednesday 27 May and Saturday 30 May, 1pm – 5pm. Each session will last up to 15 minutes, and photographs of all entrants will also appear on our website.

Beautiful gold and silver items are always a joy to the eye but I think they are much more interesting if there is a story behind them. This particular piece of gilded silverware is linked to a very famous story indeed.

The White Star line – which later included the Titanic among its fleet – was founded in Liverpool in 1869 by shipping mogul Thomas Henry Ismay. Known also as the Ocean Steam Navigation Company, White Star eventually led the way in building prestigious luxury liners such as Titanic and her almost identical sisters Olympic and Britannic.

When Ismay died in 1899, White Star was the most successful transatlantic passenger line. In 1902 it was bought by the huge American firm, the International Mercantile Marine Company.

Ismay’s son, Bruce, became the first president and managing director of the new company. He remained in control of White Star and its ships continued to fly the British flag. J Bruce Ismay, as he was known, continued his father’s close partnership with the Belfast shipbuilders Harland & Wolff which led to the construction of Titanic and her sisters.

Thomas Henry Ismay’s original home can still be seen at Beach Lawn, Waterloo. He later built a huge mansion called Dawpool at Thurstaston, Wirral, but this was demolished many years ago. J Bruce Ismay – who survived the Titanic sinking by escaping in one of the last lifeboats - lived at a large house called Sandheys in Mossley Hill, Liverpool.

In the Titanic, Lusitania and the Forgotten Empress gallery at Merseyside Maritime Museum there are parts of the magnificent Ismay Testimonial silver.  This parcel gilt dinner service was presented to Thomas by the company’s shareholders on board the White Star liner Adriatic in 1884.

The service, made by London silversmiths Hunt & Gaskell, is one of the finest of its kind. It was intended to “illustrate the progress of the art of navigation from the earliest times to the present day”.

The centrepiece (which there's more about on our main site) depicts commerce on top of the world with figures of the legendary navigators Jason (of Argonauts fame), Vasco de Gama (first European to sail to India around the Cape of Good Hope), Christopher Columbus (New World explorer) and British naval explorer Captain James Cook.

There are beautiful models of tiny vessels used for fishing and hunting – a kayak, canoe and coracle. Most of these pieces could be used for condiments such as salt, pepper and mustard. A large sweetmeat dish is flanked by two contemporary (1884) seafarers – a merchant navy officer and a sailor.

A new Maritime Tale by Stephen Guy appears every Saturday in the Liverpool Echo. A paperback – Mersey Maritime Tales (£3.99) – is available from the museum, newsagents, bookshops or from the Mersey Shop website (£1.50 p&p UK).

Here's the latest report from art historian Eleanor Beyer. Eleanor usually works in the British Museum's conservation and science department but has been visiting the paper conservation department up here in the National Conservation Centre. During her time at National Museums Liverpool she has had a look round our art galleries. Here's what she thought of the Lady Lever:

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"The Lady Lever Art Gallery sits in a village designed by Lord Lever. He aimed to have every local facility his soap factory workers might wish for in Port Sunlight, so the gallery, like the local library, was purpose built to serve his employees. The gallery appears like a mausoleum to the objects, from outside and inside with its low height, shallow dome and columned entrance, one expects it to be much older due to the style. It is in fact reinforced concrete which was the best available material at this date, clad with Portland stone on the outside. With such an enthusiastic collector and his fascination with architectural design it should be the ideal gallery space particularly with the purpose built interior spaces and design. For instance the main gallery space is the ideal height for some wonderful paintings by Edward Burne-Jones, and the small galleries for the ceramics displays.

Coming from a much older museum I was curious to see how this worked, although there were still problems with the building, much of Lord Lever's forward thinking had paid off. For instance, with few windows the gallery has more room for hanging pictures and displaying objects. Lever was visually astute and the things he collected were visually attractive (like the soap adverts) and at the same time as being of academic interest. Much of the collection itself is relatively hardy - since ceramics and most nineteenth century paintings were mainly painted in durable materials - therefore if humidity levels fluctuate these types of objects can cope. However some more fragile collections have since had to be removed, such as works on paper and embroideries, and the walls in the main gallery are no longer black. The British Museum is a far larger museum, with an even more diverse collection, from ceramics to other more fragile objects like the mummies, and ancient wall paintings. The architects of the British Museum appear to have aspired to grandeur and style for the building: environmental control had yet to become a concern in the early nineteenth century!

On a basic level Lever's gallery showed me how one individual could make it happen - interest in design as well as providing a collection for everyone. Lever had one advantage - the gallery was built to house his collection, not to house future unknown objects."

It’s strange to think that bananas were once considered an exotic luxury in Britain.

My grandmother Lillian Potter, who was born in 1885, remembered them being hawked around the streets by a “banana man” - they were not cheap.

As late as 1915 bananas were still rather glamorous and featured in society soirees, as illustrated in the classic music hall song: “I’ve just had a banana with Lady Diana, I’m Burlington Bertie from Bow”.

Sir Alfred Jones (1845 – 1909) is credited with introducing the banana to Britain when he transported the fruit on refrigerated vessels run by his Elder Dempster shipping company.

We now take for granted refrigeration for perishable goods travelling by land, sea and air. This has enabled all manner of meat, fish, fruit and vegetables to arrive in our shops throughout the year.

Little more than 100 years ago this would have been unthinkable and it was pioneers like Sir Alfred who helped transform the way we eat.

At Merseyside Maritime Museum’ s Life at Sea gallery there is a wax plaque of Sir Alfred, who was the dominant figure in the development of the trade with West Africa (pictured).

He looks the epitome of the Victorian businessman with his formal jacket, starched collar and fancy whiskers. Born in Carmarthenshire, Sir Alfred started work at the age of 12 with the African Steamship Company in Liverpool. He made several voyages to West Africa and was manager of the business when he was only 26.

He then started business on his own account with two or three small sailing ships. In 1891 he was headhunted by Liverpool-based Elder Dempster which, through purchasing shares, he later controlled.

Sir Alfred had wide territorial and financial interests in West Africa. He played a key part in opening up the West Indies to trade and tourism. In addition, he was instrumental in setting up Liverpool’s School of Tropical Medicine and left large charitable bequests in his will.

Other exhibits include a visiting card case commemorating the 1902 trials of the Elder Dempster ship Burutu.

A vintage illustrated poster declares: “Travel in comfort, travel in style, travel better - travel Elders”.
 
Elder Dempster operated mainly between its Liverpool base and West Africa. In later years it ran three still fondly-remembered liners – Aureol, Accra and Apapa – to Ghana and Nigeria.

Eventually the Elder Dempster line name came to an end in 1989 when it was bought by a French company. However, the company continued as shipping agents before being wound up in 2000.

There's more on Elder Dempster, and the company records we hold in our archives, on our main site.

A new Maritime Tale by Stephen Guy appears every Saturday in the Liverpool Echo. A paperback – Mersey Maritime Tales (£3.99) – is available from the museum, newsagents, bookshops or from the Mersey Shop website (£1.50 p&p UK).

 

Here's some news from press officer Ed Casson, who was down at the Maritime Museum yesterday to see a new acquisition go on display:

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"National Museums Liverpool has acquired another great piece of maritime history - a pennant from the flagship Cunard liner QE2.

The paying off pennant was originally presented to Liverpool City Council during the QE2's farewell visit to the city in October last year. It has now been presented to the Merseyside Maritime Museum, hanging proudly in the Life at Sea gallery.

The red 39 foot long pennant was presented to museum director Tony Tibbles yesterday by Liverpool's Lord Mayor Councillor Steve Rotheram.

Flown immediately prior to the liner leaving service, the QE2 paying off pennant is the longest in Cunard's history - one foot for each year the famous liner was in service. Because it is so big, the pennant has had be folded into sections to fit in one of the museums display cases. But to give you an idea, 39 foot is longer than three Mini Cooper cars put together!

Since her maiden voyage in 1969, the QE2 carried many famous passengers, including film stars, members of the Royal Family and world leaders. She was Cunard's flagship until succeeded by Queen Mary 2 in 2004 and is also the longest serving ship in Cunard's history."

Yesterday evening the National Conservation Centre resounded with the sights and sounds of the 1980s to celebrate the opening of the exhibition Sound and Vision - music and fashion photographed by Francesco Mellina, Liverpool, 1978-82.

The exhibition takes a look at the music and fashion scenes in the city at the time, including punk, New Wave, New Romantic and Rockabilly. There's also some great shots of some of the local and visiting bands who played in the city at the time, including an early photo of New Order still finding their feet without Ian Curtis. You may also recognise a certain unknown Irish band who opened for Wah! Heat and Pink Military on tour in 1980. What was their name again? Oh yes - U2!

As you would expect, the opening event was attended by lots of fashionable Liverpool faces, some of whom you can see in our Sound and Vision opening event Flickr set.

Konichiwa

Well I am back at work after my break in Japan, as interesting and exciting a destination as I have ever visited. It really is a mix of the old and the new and this cannot be better personified than the city of Kyoto. I spent 5 days in Tokyo, truly a metropolis of bright lights, fashionistas and the latest gadgetry but Kyoto – what some call the cultural heart of Japan - is where the clash of worlds is most obvious. As soon as you step off the Bullet train you enter Kyoto's futuristic looking plate glass and steel frame rail station building designed by Hiroshi Hara. The Bullet train really is as efficient as you are told and quite a shock for someone used to British trains when your reserved carriage actually stops in front of you and on time. I can only hope a contingent of British rail carriers executives have their next annual conference in Japan and invite the CEO of Japan Rail as the keynote! The area around the station has hotels, offices and shops aplenty like most major cities but scratch under the surface and there lies a hidden world of temples and Zen gardens of all shapes and descriptions.

I wanted to visit one in particular – Ryoanji (part of the Peaceful Dragon Temple) in North Kyoto which is a simple gravel and Zen garden. It was also visited by Monty Don in the BBC programme Around the World in 80 Gardens! On the day we visited there were already hoards of tourists there (Monty Don must have been allowed access before the crowds) and as such it was difficult to have a totally peaceful experience. There was also maintenance taking place on the viewing platform but even so, the simplicity and beauty of the garden was palpable. To get to it though you had to first walk through the beautiful temple grounds with its cherry blossoms, lake and shrines. It made me think of something I was once told by a leading expert on Stonehenge on a visit to the World Heritage Site. We stood like the masses of tourists facing inwards looking at the famous stone structure but then he told me to turn around and face outwards, to look at the surrounding landscape. Nobody else was doing this but to get a real understanding of Stonehenge he said it had to be seen in relation to its surroundings.

I could not resist visiting a few museums whilst I was over there and thoroughly enjoyed the Tokyo National Museum. It is situated in the beautiful Ueno Park which was in full cherry blossom bloom during our visit. The park was packed with families, tourists and strangely... Tokyo rockers! Several rockers were dancing their hearts away to some loud Japanese rock 'n' roll directly opposite the museum entrance. The museum grounds are also the location of the Le Corbusier inspired Gallery of Horyuji Treasures which was designed by Yoshio Taniguchi (he was also the architect for MoMA in New York) which consists of over 300 objects, mainly from the 7th - 8th century, which were donated to the Imperial Household by the Horyuji Temple in 1878. It was a bit too dark for my liking inside the actual galleries but I liked the sense of space in the research area and library as well as the overall design. 

We also decided to take a day trip from Kyoto to Hiroshima. It was as expected a very somber and sobering trip but an interesting one nonetheless. I was particularly impressed with the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb victims and Hall of Remembrance which was a very informative and respectfully designed centre. This was in sharp contrast to the larger Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which in comparison had some rather dated displays. I am fully aware of the need to be respectful when looking at sensitive subjects but you also sometimes need to be quite graphic and not water down displays or exhibits. This museum might have taken that further than I personally would have though, that said; it was very busy with a large amount of schoolchildren who would have had to face issues which unfortunately are still with us in the world today. So it was a great trip and I thoroughly recommend it as a destination for museum aficionados, general culture vultures, amateur gardeners and even rockers!

Bye for now.

I spent Monday with a film crew from the popular BBC 2 show Flog It! – not at an auction but perusing some of our fabulous collections.

 

We focused on the Liverpool waterfront – looking back at the fascinating history of the Albert Dock and touring the new Museum of Liverpool.

 

First stop was the Merseyside Maritime Museum and the Albert Dock where I was interviewed by presenter Paul Martin walking along the quayside admiring the stunning architecture and remarkable Victorian cranes, winches and pulleys.

 

It’s not easy talking and walking with a camera crew in front of you. Then there was the issue of my face. “We’re getting too much profile,” said the cameraman. It was explained that the viewer likes to see your full face not the side of it.

 

I managed to get the hang of facing forward and occasionally glancing at Paul. We talked about the dock’s builder Jesse Hartley, Prince Albert’s visit in 1846 and why the dock was almost demolished in the 1960s.

 

After lunch featuring the excellent pies at the Maritime Museum café, we headed to our workshops to see some amazing exhibits being conserved for the Museum of Liverpool when it opens late next year.

 

Paul interviewed land transport curator Sharon Brown in the 3^rd class carriage from the legendary Liverpool Overhead Railway (pictured - more information here). It is one of the many stars of the new museum.

 

It may have been the carriage I rode in with my father in 1953 to see the smouldering wreck of the Empress of Canada in Liverpool docks. I was only five but remember vividly the incredible experience of clattering along in the elevated railway and seeing the capsized ship resembling a great whale.

 

The crew also filmed senior conservator David Letsche working on the Lion which once hauled carriages on the Liverpool to Manchester railway in the 1830s. Lion starred in the classic Ealing comedy The Titfield Thunderbolt.

 

They were fascinated by the first car off the assembly line at Liverpool’s Halewood plant in 1963 – an immaculate Ford Anglia.

 

We ended the day at the Museum of Liverpool with its breathtaking views of the Liverpool waterfront and River Mersey.

 

National Museums Liverpool’s building operations manager Martin Hemmings took Paul and crew on a tour of the enormous building.

 

Martin pointed out the specially-constructed area where the Overhead Railway carriage will stand, overlooking the Lion.

 

The cameraman cleverly used artist’s impressions of the new galleries to line them up exactly with the real display areas.

 

The day had started with cloud and rain but ended in bright sunshine, enabling the crew to get superb shots of the dazzling stonework and huge shimmering windows.

 

This edition of Flog It! is due for screening in the autumn.