Dealing with a collection like that of the Petrie Museum means we often encounter unusual objects that reveal the history of the original excavations, as well as the artefacts themselves. This is often reflected in the materials that the small finds were originally packed in. It’s not unusual to examine an artefact brought over with a cocoa tin, a cigarette box of a long-lost Egyptian brand like Melkonian or Maspero Freres, or simply a match box. Such ad-hoc containers clearly reflect the materials the excavators had to hand, as well as their own supplies on site in Egypt, giving us an evocative insight to life during the digs.
As well as reused containers, other fragments of life from the origins of the collection can also make an appearance. Whilst handling a large bone cosmetic pot, it became apparent that it was packed with a page from an edition of The Times dating from December 1923. The pot itself is cracked lengthways and held together with a strip of fabric, presumably the same sort of age as the newspaper.
So, for anyone who missed the headlines on Wednesday 19th December 1923, I can help fill in the gaps. The proposal for the Northern and Western Motorway, to be built by the region’s unemployed, appears to be a controversial idea. “Sinister” Communist Sunday Schools are not proving popular with a certain Mr Perry of Coventry. And finally, Charterhouse beat Shrewsbury 4-0 at Crystal Palace.
