Nottingham Castle’s museum has been given a good sprucing as part of their extensive renovation and, after getting a sneak preview, we can attest that they’re looking bang on. Capturing elements of Nottingham’s artistic, industrial, military, social and rebellious history, the new exhibitions do a great job of providing an insight into the city’s eclectic, eventful past. To celebrate their reopening, we took a nosey around to find nine items that caught our eye...
1. World War I PH Gas Helmet - Museum of the Mercian Regiment
The British Army issued this early example of a gas mask during the First World War in order to protect troops against the various types of deadly chemical weapons being used during trench warfare. Rather than acting as a filter, as was the case with later developments of the gas mask, the PH Gas Helmet was dipped in sodium phenate, a chemical that neutralised the effects of some gasses. The use of deadly gas, including chlorine, phosgene and tear gas, was a new development in warfare at the time and, by the end of the conflict, had killed an estimated 30,000 men, permanently injuring a further 500,000.
3. Salt-Glazed Monkey Figurine - Early Nottingham Craft Gallery
The process of salt-glazing originated in the Rhineland of Germany around 1400, but became widely practiced in Britain during the seventeenth and eighteenth century, when Nottingham established itself as producers of some of the highest quality and highly sought after salt-glazed items. The process, which involves adding salt to the kiln when it reaches its highest temperature, creates a glossy, orange-peel-like texture that is also much more durable. This particular example from 1767, which takes the shape of a monkey and has openings in its humped back, shoulder and mouth, is said to have been used as a pipe holder.
5. The Flawford Figures - Early Nottingham Craft Gallery
Sometimes, the stories behind how artifacts end up in a museum are as interesting as the items themselves. These stunning alabaster statues are rare survivors of Henry VIII and his Reformation, when England broke from Rome to become a Protestant nation, and almost all Catholic sculptures, images and books were destroyed. Having been discovered by chance in 1779, these statues of Virgin and Child, A Bishop and St. Peter as Pope – which all date from the late fourteenth century – were amazingly used as garden ornaments before finding their way to the Castle.
7. Lace Evening Dress and Jacket - Nottingham Lace Gallery
As one of the standout pieces in their impressive collection celebrating Nottingham’s lace history, this dress and jacket were created for the Festival of Britain in 1951. Worn by Lady Bragg, the wife of Nobel Prize recipient Sir Lawrence Bragg, its intricate design was based on the recently discovered crystalline structure of the mineral Beryl. It was manufactured by A.C. Gill, a lace firm based on Warser Gate in Notts, and founded by Albert Charles Gill who was a key figure in the city’s lace industry before emigrating to Australia, where he died in 1918.
9. Jeremiah Brandreth’s Execution Block - Rebellion Gallery
One of the most poignant elements of the Castle’s brilliant new Rebellion Gallery, this large wooden block was used in the execution of Jeremiah Brandreth, one of the last men in Britain to be executed via the method of beheading by axe. Brandreth, also known as The Nottingham Captain, was an out-of-work stocking maker from Sutton-in-Ashfield who was one of the suspected leaders of an 1817 Luddite march on Nottingham. The display is a visceral reminder that Brandreth paid the ultimate price for his participation, but is still remembered as a hero of the worker’s cause, and a true Nottingham rebel.
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