Napoleon bust and Bowes Museum by Dr Howard Coutts

Interviewed by Ralph Roberts

Question One – What does the museum have in its collection regarding the French Revolution and Napoleon?

Question 2 – How has the museum’s collection been added to over time and what does it look for when adding to the collection?

Question 3 – What do you look for and find interesting as curator that form part of the collection?

Question 4 – In a wider context how does the museum aid in understanding the period as a whole?

Question 5 – What makes the Staffordshire bust of Napoleon particularly interesting?

Question 6 – Is there a possibility that it could be post 1802?

Question 7 – How important is it for students to take into consideration the objects themselves rather than abstract theories and literary ideas?

Question 8 – What can we learn about Napoleonic perceptions about ancient and other cultures? (in reference to Egyptians depicted on a Napoleonic mantelpiece)

Question 9 – How does this collection in relation to the French Revolution and Napoleon compare to the research you have done on other items?

Question 10 – What else can students do to help understand the French Revolution and Napoleon in regard to objects?

The weblog of the University of Kent's strand of the Waterloo200 Legacy project devoted to teaching and understanding the history of the Age of Revolution