Free tickets now available for our November Late Night 'With These Hands: Crafting a Shared Humanity' on Friday 7 November, 7-10pm. Marking the opening of a new MultakaOxford display, the evening will include craft activities, workshops, a bar & much more! bit.ly/46fZNBd

It has been a colourful treat for the Clothworkers’ Textile Project Team to work with the Gigi Croker collection. Gigi’s photographs bring the collection to life by documenting the skilled crafts people who make the beautiful textiles. Here we see cloth made by Omani weaver Sa'eed Nasser Habeeb.

Join us for the launch of Mara Gold's debut book 'Ancient Myths and Legends Without Men' and discover the women and gender non-conforming characters who shaped and subverted womanhood from the very beginning and whose stories still resonate today! Thurs 23 Oct, 17.30-19.30. £5. bit.ly/3KtDJdU

"Our family have been quietly and patiently telling her story over many decades..knowing how important and faithful the stories from her grandparents were to the future generations. We never imagined that her work would be lauded and acknowledged." June Northcroft Grant www.ox.ac.uk/news/2025-09...

"Mākereti was a trailblazer... Her legacy as an inspiration to many people in Aotearoa New Zealand, the Māori community worldwide, and scholars and students internationally, continues to this day." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A plaster cast of the 'Venus of Dolní Věstonice', a Palaeolithic female figure made from a mix of charred powdered bone and clay. The original is c.30,000 years old, making it one of the earliest known manmade ceramic objects & was discovered in a mammoth hunter’s dwelling in Czech Republic in 1925.

Maori scholar, Makereti Papakura writing at her desk c.1910. The room is decorated with a mix of Maori & European mementoes whilst the rafters are painted with traditional kowhaiwhai patterns. Makereti will be awarded a posthumous degree in Oxford tomorrow, almost a century after she died in 1930.

Happy 50th anniversary to DATS - Dress and Textile Specialists! The Clothworkers’ Textile Team are delighted to have our poster on collaborative and community led research into Nigerian adire textiles included in the 50th Anniversary Conference ‘Shaping Culture through Dress and Textiles’.

Tune in to my radio show at 5pm BST today to hear the fascinating Rosa Dyer from @pittriversmuseum.bsky.social telling us all about her research into the usage of bird feathers by indigenous people of South America! I'm so excited! Listen live or catch up here: www.thesourcefm.co.uk/listen-again

Our next Autism-Friendly opening will take place from 9-10am on Saturday 18 October, offering the opportunity for families with members on the Autism spectrum to explore Pitt Rivers & @morethanadodo.bsky.social in a quiet environment. Booking is essential. More info at bit.ly/4pJlscQ.

Amazing to meet so many diverse and brilliant artists in person as we kicked off the Century of Sounds project with @pittriversmuseum.bsky.social with an artist meetup. Can't wait to hear the creative results in a few months!

An Ethiopian priest's crown made from plates of incised tin riveted together & hung with silver ornaments. These rattle and chime as the priest moves, announcing his arrival during solemn processions on feast days such as Timkat (Epiphany), Easter & Christmas. Donated by Wilfred Thesiger in 1995.

Book now for our Plastic Smithing Workshop held behind the scenes in our Conservation Lab & learn a range of cold-working & hot-working techniques for creating jewellery and other small objects from the plentiful waste plastic around us. Fri 14 or Sat 15 November. £90, incl.lunch. bit.ly/4lpj33m

Born in 1873 Maori scholar Mākereti Papakura is believed to be the first indigenous woman to matriculate at University of Oxford. She enrolled in 1922 to read Anthropology at Pitt Rivers Museum but tragically died just before graduating. She will be awarded a posthumous degree in Oxford next week.

The Clothworkers Textile Project have been looking at two 'Pua Kumbu' textiles from Sarawak. Collected a century apart in 1908 & 2019, they were made using a combination of ikat dyeing and backstrap loom weaving, a technique unique in its use of fibres and dyes endemic to the jungles of Borneo.

TODAY/TOMORROW Join us for a series of conversations between makers, academics & curators, exploring what we can learn about historic objects from contemporary makers. Free, no booking. 13.30-17.30. All talks in the Lecture Theatre in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. bit.ly/4g83CvD

What can placing museum objects in dialogue with contemporary practitioners & researchers reveal about their original makers? Join us for a free public workshop exploring the art, craft, psychology & politics of making things. Tues 16 & Wed 17 Sept, 13.30-17.30. All welcome. bit.ly/4g83CvD

These woman’s shoes, bought in 1898, are made of soft leather stencil-dyed to look like printed silk. The label is a London firm: 'BRUCKNER – shoe-maker To Her Royal Highness the Princess Amelia'. Bruckner was bankrupt by 1809 & the princess died in 1810, suggesting they date to the turn of C19th.

The Clothworkers’ Team had a wonderful summer collaborating with photography interns Christina & Mirella. We bring Gigi Croker’s collection to life through her journals, photos & textiles. Here we see a camel saddle bag being woven by a local expert & Gigi helping to stretch warp threads in Oman.

Learn about the politics and processes of making objects displayed @pittriversmuseum.bsky.social in 'FORM', a 2-day workshop 16-17 Sept. Don't miss this rare opportunity to hear from academics, craftspeople and researchers exploring how museum objects were formed. www.prm.ox.ac.uk/event/form-p...

"My jewellery is fuelled by a delight in the natural world and a desire to protect it.” - Bronwen Gwillim. Book now for a one-day Plastic Smithing Workshop with award-winning artist Bronwen. Fri 14 or Sat 15 November. 10.00-16.30. Cost: £90 (Members £72), incl. lunch & refreshments. bit.ly/4lpj33m

This ground stone axehead is grooved around three sides for haft bindings. It is very old, probably from the Archaic period (8000BC -1000 BC) & was excavated by US archaeologist Horatio Nelson Rust in the Illinois area in 1877. Donated to the Museum in 1928, it is on display in the Archaeology case.

TODAY Pop in for our weekly Family Activity Corner led by our dedicated volunteers. Pick up a trail, get creative with a craft, find books to explore and more! Saturdays 12-3pm. Free, just drop-in.

As part of the #MakingtheMuseum project researching the many makers behind objects in the collections, join academics & practitioners in this free public workshop exploring the politics, philosophy & processes of making. Tues 16 & Wed 17 Sept, 13.30-17.30. Free, no booking required. bit.ly/4g83CvD

Like all textile enthusiasts, the Clothworkers’ Team love to see the underside of a piece to help to understand the making process. We are working to add photos to the database & wanted to share this Kuki shawl, known locally as Thangnang ponsil, which is as beautiful on the back as it is the front!

Create your very own contemporary jewellery from waste plastic in our one-day workshop with award-winning artist and jeweller Bronwen Gwillim. Friday 14 OR Saturday 15 November, 10.00-16.30. Tickets: £90 (Members £72), includes lunch & refreshments. bit.ly/4lpj33m

These beautifully carved wooden sticks were made by the Ainu people, who historically lived in Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands (Russia), and Hokkaido (Japan). Incorrectly labelled as ‘moustache lifters', such sticks, known as iku-pasuy, were used by Ainu men to make offerings of sake to spirits.

Find out about recreating Egyptian and Sudanese pottery techniques in this short Making the Museum film as Dr Beth Hodgett interviews Dr Sarah Doherty (University of Oxford) and Bryony Smerdon (PRM) and attempts to replicate the techniques of these ancient potters! www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-SJ...

Take part in 'A Century of Sounds', a unique partnership between Cities & Memory & Pitt Rivers Museum, inviting listeners to explore a century of incredible recordings and record a response to their selected soundtrack. Closing date: 31 Aug 2025. Find out more at: bit.ly/45oRqCZ

Waste plastic is an inspiring material in plentiful supply. Experiment, play and learn new skills in our one-day Plastic Smithing workshop teaching how to make bold, contemporary jewellery out of discarded plastic. Fri 14 or Sat 15 Nov, 10.00-16.30. £90 (incl. lunch & refreshments). bit.ly/4lpj33m

We're hosting a FREE workshop @pittriversmuseum.bsky.social this September on the topic of 'Form'. Join artists, makers and researchers in a series of public conversations about what 'Form' means in their practice. Full programme here 👇 No need to book! prm.web.ox.ac.uk/sites/defaul...

TODAY Patterns are sneaky... they get everywhere! In today's Art Challenge, spot different patterns around the museum and then draw some of the most interesting ones. 12-3pm. Free, just drop-in. All welcome!

A Century of Sounds is a partnership between Cities and Memory & Pitt Rivers Museum, inviting listeners to explore a century of incredible recordings from the museum’s collections in brand new ways. Find out how you can take part in this unique project at: bit.ly/45oRqCZ Closing date: 31 August

Catch a glimpse of this outrigger fishing canoe from Zanzibar suspended high in the galleries. Named 'Salama' meaning peace & decorated with watchful eyes, it has been in the collections since 1967. Watch 'Salama' being installed in the galleries in this archive film from the 1960s: bit.ly/4197x53

Tickets are now available for our Plastic Smithing workshop with Bronwen Gwillem in November 2025. Book your place now and start looking out for a piece of waste plastic with jewellery potential! Fri 14 or Sat 15 November, 10.00 - 17.00. £90 (incl. lunch & refreshments). Members: £72. bit.ly/4lpj33m

#MemoryMuseum Pick an object & challenge yourself to memorise it in detail. Walk away, then try drawing it as accurately as possible - just one of today's Art Challenges. Pop in between 12-3pm today/tomorrow & choose your challenge. Free, all ages welcome! bit.ly/46ZZ87T

Our Collections team have been getting some smoking pipes out for a research visit this week, including this amazing Stafford Ware whimsy pipe dated c.1900. Also called puzzle pipes, they were usually made out of leftover clay and although they could be used for smoking, were primarily decorative.

Watch anthropologist & woodworker Prof Trevor Marchand discuss woodworking planes from the museum collections with furniture & cabinet maker Toby Cufflin. Part of the #MakingtheMuseum project series of conversations about making and tools in the museum. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucWn...

Look out for this small copper bowl on our World of Water trail. It's actually a water clock from Sri Lanka - place it on water and it will sink after 11 minutes as water flows in through the hole perforated in the base.

The Clothworkers’ team love how textiles tell stories. We’re excited to share new pieces showing tradition, creativity & adaptation. This dress & jacket made with embroidered indigo-dyed inserts of a Khalaga (Salt dress) feature a technique called al-roqma with a stitch unique to Salt, Jordan.

The Ejagham (Ekoi) people of southeastern Nigeria used objects like this bird-beaked headdress as props in ceremonial plays. It has been pyro-engraved, using a heated tool or fine flame, with 'nsibidi', a centuries-old ideographic script used by secret societies. Donated to the Museum in 1914.

Embracing Blue Monday with adire! The Clothworkers’ team is exploring this culturally significant indigo dyed textile from Nigeria. Made using resist dye techniques like adire eleko (starch paste) and adire oniko (tying), we’re celebrating the creativity of the women behind these beautiful designs!

This leather shoe & detachable sole were excavated in 1899 at Illatum, Egypt & date to the Roman occupation of Ancient Egypt (30 BC–AD 395). Faint red colouring suggests they may have belonged to a high-status person, as red kermes dye derived from insects from European oak trees was expensive.

The Clothworkers’ team is cataloguing beautiful new pieces like this Palestinian thobe Malaka (royal dress) from Bethlehem. It features Tahriri, a couching technique that is unique to the region. The design is called kuwwar meaning ‘flowerpot’, thought to be a variation of the tree of life motif.

#PhotoFriday Dakota Goodhouse (Two Wars) and daughter April Shooting Star Lee, Hunkpapa Lakota Nation. Photographed 30 August 2017. www.prm.ox.ac.uk/event/talk-b...

Renowned US photographer Shane Balkowitsch will be talking about his career and his unique project to create 1000 ambrotype portraits of Native American people in a free talk, Tuesday 5 August, 2-3.30pm. bit.ly/42ZoYFc

TODAY Free lunchtime poetry & Maori ceremonial music performance by Ariano Tikao, who will be performing her brand new poem ‘Kōauau 1933.5.6’ about one of the taonga puoro (singing treasures) in the museum collections. 1-2pm. Free, no booking required. bit.ly/4eevNrV

The richly decorated Maori end flute which inspired ‘Kōauau 1933.5.6’, a new spoken word piece written by Ariana Tikao about the 'taonga puoro' (singing treasures) in the collections. Free lunchtime poetry & music performance tomorrow, 1-2pm. No booking required. bit.ly/4eevNrV

We're all familiar with modern satnav systems but would you recognise this 'stick chart' collected in 1896 as an ancient navigation aid? Developed by sailors in the Marshall Islands to help them sail between islands, the shells represent islands & the sticks represent the unique local wave swells.

"Equal parts soulful and stirring, haunting and ethereal...Delivered with a dual sense of poignancy and urgency." Enjoy Maori ceremonial music and poetry in this free performance by renowned NZ Arts Laureate, writer & musician Ariana Tikao. Tues 5 Aug 1-2pm. Free, no booking. bit.ly/4eevNrV