New Exhibition Ad Montem Opens
A new special exhibition has opened in the Verey Gallery: Ad Montem, Eton’s Lost Procession. First recorded in 1561, the peculiar and spectacular ceremony called Montem was celebrated for centuries until it was abolished in 1844. The exhibition traces this traditional event through historic artwork, archival records and rare surviving examples of ornate costume. Open on Sunday afternoons and by appointment until 15 October 2023. For more information about visiting, please see our website or contact collections@etoncollege.org.uk
Dinosaurs Return
Five objects from the Natural History Museum have returned to Eton after having been on display in the West Berkshire Museum in Newbury for the past year. They were seen there by over 21,000 visitors to The Age of Dinosaurs exhibition.
Gray’s Facelift
Ultraviolet light cast over Benjamin van der Gucht’s portrait of Thomas Gray during conservation revealed heavy layers of overpainting. As 20th century alterations were lifted, varied tonality of the skin tones in the portrait and neatly detailed costume have been revealed. The delicate brushwork can now be seen. Minor losses that were hidden by the older intervention will be infilled with more judicious in-painting to allow us to enjoy the work in a state much closer to its original when it returns to School Hall in the coming months.
Provost’s Letters
Twenty letters of former Provosts – Zachary Cradock (Provost 1681-95), Jonathan Davies (Provost 1791-1809) and Edward Craven Hawtrey (Provost 1853-65) – have been added to the archives. We previously held very few papers of any of these men, so these letters greatly enhance our records of their times in post. You can read a blog about the Cradock record.
Positive Developments for Negatives
Work has begun to rehouse the glass-plate negative collection in the Photographic Archive. The project will focus on 2,000 glass-plate negatives dating from the 1860s to the early 1900s that are in need of urgent cleaning and better storage. The archives team will also make these fragile objects publicly accessible by digitising and cataloguing them.
Academy Visit
This month, a group of Year 10 students from Ormiston Sandwell Community Academy visited College Library. They were shown a display featuring STEM in early collections and engaged in a discussion on how developments in science and technology have changed our understanding of the world.
OE ’63 Display
Old Etonian class of ’63 recently visited to see a College Archives display of archives featuring House, games and society books, as well as photographs and a film made by the Eton College Film Unit in 1963.
