The Prince and the Plunder

A book on how Britain took one boy and piles of treasures from Ethiopia

Tag: National Museums of Scotland

Bracelet with ‘eyes’

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: Iron bracelet with with groups of ‘eyes’ suspended from terminals

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

The museums’ online catalogue entry has no pictures

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: 1893.211
Description: Iron penannular bracelet with groups of ‘eyes’ suspended from terminals, and surface hatched with lines: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, obtained at Magdala, 1868
Acquisition source: Mackenzie, William Sir K. C.B., C.S.I., 1811 – 1893

Posted In Clothes & ornaments | Miscellaneous | The Plunder
Tagged

Bronze patterned armlet

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: Bronze patterned armlet

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

The museums’ online catalogue entry has no picture

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: A.1893.212
Description: Bronze annular armlet ornamented with a raised plaited pattern, ribs and pellets: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, obtained at Magdala, 1868
Acquisition source: Mackenzie, William Sir K. C.B., C.S.I., 1811 – 1893

Posted In Clothes & ornaments | The Plunder
Tagged

Bracelet said to belong to Queen Terunesh

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: A silver gilt bracelet said to belong to Queen Terunesh, the wife of Tewodros and mother of Alemayehu, taken by one of the freed prisoners on Magdala

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

The museums’ online catalogue entry has no picture

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: A.A.1901.395
Description: Bracelet of silver-gilt cast with bands of pellets and rope patterns, worn by King Theodore’s Queen: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, taken by one of the Abyssinian prisoners at Magdala
Acquisition source: Holt, W.J., Colonel, 1901 (fl.)

Posted In Adornments & jewelry | Royal regalia | Said to belong to the queen | The Plunder
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Horn goblet said to belong to Tewodros

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: Horn goblet, said to have belonged to Emperor Tewodros, taken during the storming of Magdala

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

The museums’ online catalogue entry has two photographs and describes a “goblet of horn with fillet at lip and foot”.

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: A.1893.209
Description: Goblet of horn with fillet at lip and foot: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, said to have belonged to King Theodore, obtained at the Storming of Magdala, 1868
Acquisition source: Mackenzie, William Sir K. C.B., C.S.I., 1811 – 1893

Posted In Drinking vessels | Royal regalia | Said to belong to Tewodros | The Plunder
Tagged

Steel cross

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: Steel cross

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

The museums’ online catalogue entry has one image

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: A.1893.210
Description: Steel cross, Greek form, with four equal ornate arms and flat square tablet at end of stem ornamented with incised circles and points: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, obtained at the Storming of Magdala, 1868
Acquisition source: Mackenzie, William Sir K. C.B., C.S.I., 1811 – 1893

Posted In Crosses | Sacred artefacts | The Plunder
Tagged

Whip ‘picked up in the state prison at Magdala’

Published June 18, 2024 / by Andrew Heavens / Leave a Comment

What: Whip with wooden handle

Where: The National Museums of Scotland

Sources:

National Museums of Scotland spreadsheet
Accession number: A.L.367.10
Description: Whip or geraf with wooden handle and long coiled leather lash, used for thrashing prisoners to death: Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, picked up in the state prison at Magdala
Acquisition source: Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

Posted In Whip
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