The brooch was designed in a pre-Roman ‘Celtic Art’ style, reminiscent of a time before the Romans occupied Britain in 43 CE. See it on display in Gallery 13, Level G. Dragonesque brooch, c. 100BCE – 200CE. Copper alloy, 5.6cm. AN1927.4616

They would have been used as clothes fasteners, but they were also highly decorated. This brooch was probably enamelled, so it would have been a colourful addition to any wardrobe.

This Late Iron Age cast dragonesque brooch features a complicated design with schematic animal heads at either end and a yin-yang in the centre. Dragonesque brooches were made from around 75–175 CE in Roman Britain.

This particular vase also features an inscription in German which translates to ‘Honour the women! They spin and weave heavenly roses into earthly life’. 🌹 Two Biedermeier beakers, Vienna, c.1820–1830. WA1939.46 and WA1939.45

In 1816 Anton Kothgasser set up his own studio in Vienna for decorating glass and became known for producing beakers like the one of the left here decorated with flowers.

These beautiful beakers were made in Vienna during the 19th century. The technique of decorating glass in transparent enamels was developed in the early 19th century.

🐚 Venus, Sandro Botticelli & workshop, c. 1490, tempera on canvas, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Gemäldegalerie/ photo: Jörg P. Anders; Public Domain Mark 1.0

The pincered decoration of lozenges on the body is known as 'nipt diamond waies', a type of decoration with Venetian origins, which is not surprising as workers from Murano were employed in Ravenscroft's glass-house at the Savoy, London. See it on display in Gallery 48 on Level 2. 💜 WA1957.24.2.1

George Ravenscroft (1618-81), a glass merchant, was the first to obtain a patent to produce lead-glass in England from 1674.

This beautiful amethyst-tinted serving bottle is made from a type of glass developed during the 1670s that contained a high percentage of lead. This so-called ‘lead-glass’ or ‘crystal’ was much heavier, less fragile and more brilliant than that produced previously in either England or Europe.

Here, Ruskin has captured the apse of Pisa's cathedral. In 1873, he said of this building that ‘no architecture on this grand scale, so delicately skilful in execution, or so daintily disposed in proportion, exists elsewhere in the world’. 🖌️ WA.RS.REF.076

John Ruskin had a lifelong interest in architecture. Some of his first articles were published in The Architectural Magazine, 1837–8, and his book The Stones of Venice (1851–3) was arguably his most influential work.

Amongst them was this remnant of a wheel hub. See it on display in Gallery 24, Level G. Hub and spokes of chariot wheel, c. 1539–1075 BCE. Elm and tamarisk wood, with remains of plaster and rawhide binding, 29 cm length. AN1923.663.2

Much of our knowledge of these vehicles is derived from the six found in the tomb of Tutankhamun. Seven years before Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter made their most celebrated discovery, they had investigated the tomb of king Amenhotep III, where they found pieces of a royal chariot.

This hub and spokes of a chariot wheel is over 3,000 years old! Horse-drawn chariots came to symbolise the might of the pharaoh. Actual chariots were placed in the tombs of kings and high-ranking courtiers.

🦇 Ojime bead in the form of a bat, Japan, late 19th century, EA1956.3749 🐝 Tetradrachm coin with a bee, Turkey, silver, HCR5273 🐇 Tile with a rabbit or hare, Seville, 16th century, WA1951.60 🐻 Black bear cub in snow, Mori Shūhō (1738 - 1813), ink and colour on silk, EA1964.95.f

🦑 Ojime in the form of an octopus, Japan, late 19th century, EA1956.3481 🐶 Dog beneath bamboo, Qizong Zhang (c. 1931), ink and colour on silk, EA1967.13 🦁 Gold-glass fragment, medallion with the head of a leopard with open jaws, Catacombs of Rome, 200-400 CE, gold and glass, AN2007.29

🖌️ Venus, Sandro Botticelli & workshop, c. 1490, tempera on canvas, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Gemäldegalerie/ photo: Jörg P. Anders; Public Domain Mark 1.0