Object of the Month

Eye of Horus amulet Ancient Egyptian, c. 1050 – 332 BC Faience Our Object of the Month for October is an Ancient Egyptian amulet in the form of the ‘eye of Horus’ or wedjat. Amulets were worn or carried in Ancient Egypt as it was believed that they had magical or...

Tureen with lid Japanese, late 17th centuryPorcelain Our September Object of the Month is this large porcelain tureen made in Japan for export to Europe. It is in an octagonal form and is decorated with a rich underglaze blue design of waterfalls, bamboo forests, and...

Stela for Takheby Ancient Egyptian, Late Period, 746 - 525 BCPainted wood In June, visitors to the Castle voted to choose our 100th Object of the Month out of six options. The winner was this Ancient Egyptian funerary slab, or stela. It is currently on display in the...

In June, we asked our visitors to vote for the 100th Object of the Month out of six options – an Ancient Egyptian stela, a portrait of Henry Streatfeild, a tobacco box, a statue of the Buddha, a Japanese porcelain bowl, and a portrait of Denys Eyre Bower. We received...

Portrait of an unknown Jacobite Artist unknown18th centuryOil on copper, silk, leather, paper engraving Our June Object of the Month is this fascinating portrait miniature of an unidentified man. The portrait is in its original leather locket which would have been...

Pair of sake bottles Japanese, 18th or early 19th century Urushi lacquer For May, we have chosen this pair of sake bottles decorated with urushi lacquer, gold and silver powder, and gold leaf. The design on the bottles includes tachibana (a type of citrus) and pine...

Statue of Amida Japanese, 18th century Carved wood decorated with urushi lacquer and inlaid rock crystal Our April Object of the Month is this statue of the Buddha Amitabha, or Amida in Japanese. It is made from carved wood decorated in urushi lacquer with gold and...

To celebrate re-opening and our new Egyptian Room displays, we have chosen the coffin lid of Irethoreru for our March Object of the Month.

Image by Paul Gardner Silver locket relic set early 18th centurySilver, horn, hair, paper, textile With February being the month most associated with the heart, our Object of the Month is this silver locket which is said to contain a segment of James II’s heart. The...

New Year flask Ancient Egyptian, Late Period, 664 - 525 BCFaience In celebration of the New Year, our Object of the Month is this Ancient Egyptian flask inscribed ‘May the God Ptah open a good year.’ It returned to the castle last summer, having been on loan to the...

Statue of Guanyin Chinese, 18th centuryGilt bronze Our Object of the Month for December is this statue of a bodhisattva known in China as Guanyin. In her hands she holds a small image of a child. In this form, Guanyin is known as ‘bringer of sons’ and is believed to...

Red lacquer writing box Japanese, late 18th - late 19th centuryCarved red lacquer, black lacquer, silver, stone Our November Object of the Month is a Japanese writing box decorated in carved red urushi lacquer. The technique of carving red urushi lacquer originated in...