The Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology

• General Information
• Opening Hours & Directions
• Accommodation
• Contact Us
• Events
• Renewal 2005
• Press Section
• Research Enquiries
• Photograph Service
• Copyright notice
• Website Accessibility

The renewal of the Ure Museum's Learning Environment 2005

Before (Click, hold, and drag to navigate. When cursor changes to an arrow click to jump into the Museum.)	After

Design: Martin Andrews, with assistance from Rob Banham
Text: Amy Smith and Rhianedd Smith, with assistance from Kirsten Bedigan, David Carter, Gillian Knight, Rebekah Moran and Sonya Nevin
Steering Committee: Daniel Bone (Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford), Michael Fulford (University of Reading), Will Phillips (Museum of English Rural Life, University of Reading); Catherine Roberts (Museum of Reading)
Advisory Board: Roy Brigden (Museum of English Rural Life); Jillian Greenaway (Reading Museum); Dyfri Williams (British Museum)

We are also glad to acknowledge the participation of the following individuals and institutions who we number among the generous volunteers, donors, lenders, conservators, image providers, and companies who made this renewal possible.

Volunteers

• Leslie Bonaventura and Cameron Hahn travelled from Dartmouth College, USA, to spend their Summer 2005 helping us with researching, writing, painting, and many other oddjobs.
• Sarah Debenham (Reading BA 2004) devoted many Saturdays to our design, text, paint, and packing.
• Dr Anthea Harris (University of Birmingham / School of Oriental and African Studies) has advised and helped with our Coptic textiles from the beginning, and provided images and text for their display.
• Sadie Pickup (Reading MA 2005, BA 2004) worked on the project full time since submitting her thesis for her MA in Ancient Art in September 2005, and worked diligently on our Cypriote figurines and other details before that.
• Ann Pillar, Peter, Julia Smith, and Phil Wickens stayed up with us all the night before the opening cleaning and installing signs and labels.
• Thanks also to Sarah Moss; Emma Rixon; Richard Miller; Sally Fox; Jessica Pitcairn; and Richard Constable

Donors

• A bequest from Rosemary Chapman and an anonymous friend provided funds for the purchase of a 5th c. BC core-formed glass alabastron [2005.9.1] like the ones excavated by Prof. Percy Ure in some graves at Rhitsona, Greece. Rosemary Chapman was a Friend of the University and a student of Annie Ure's.
• The Chichester District Museum donated in 2004 a Cypro-Egyptian terracotta 'poppy vase' [2004.10.1]and a Hellenistic tetradrachm (coin) depicting Alexander the Great. We are grateful to Ian Friel and Jane Seddon for this donation.
• Bill and Bonnie Ure kindly donated parts of Percy Ure's library and other personal items.

Lenders

• The Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, at the British Museum lent a statue of Aphrodite and Eros found at the Temple of Aphrodite, Cyrene. We are particularly grateful to Dyfri Williams, Ian Jenkins, Peter Higgs, Trevor Coughlan, and Ken Biggs.
• The Reading Museum lent us 5 new vases, on top of the 300 that are already housed in the Ure Museum. We are grateful for Jill Greenaway's cooperation.
• The Heberden Coin Room, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford University lent 15 Electrotype copies of Greek coins from the British Museum. We are grateful to Dr Chris Howgego and Henry Kim.
• Sally and Terry Fox lent a red-figure Paestan cup from the 4th century BC.
• Professor Emeritus Jane Gardner lent replicas of bronze psephoi (voting ballots) from the Athenian Agora.
• The Department of Archaeology, University of Reading lent excavation tools. We are grateful for the kind assistance of Margaret Matthews and Dr Tim Phillips.

Conservators

• Some of our Coptic textile collection has been newly restored by Kate Gill at the Textile Conservation Centre at Winchester, following on the research of Dr. Anthea Harris, with funds from Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Museum Development Office and Reading University Museums, Archives and Collections Services
• Liz Barham at the Museum of London cleaned and restored a rediscovered Attic white lekythos from Reading Museum.

Artists

• Abigail Algar
• Heledd Straker
• Helen James

Image providers

• Paul Gardner, British Museum
• Dr Ursula Kaestner, Berlin Museums (Preussischer Kulturbesitz)
• Dr Irma Wehgartner, Martin-von-Wagner Museum, University of W¸rzburg
• Prof Michael Vickers, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford University
• Jacklyn Burns, J Paul Getty Museum
• Dr Charlie Gates, Bilkent University
• Lisa Cerrato, Perseus Project
• Dr Alain Pasquier, MusÈe du Louvre
• Andreas Ruehrig, Vienna Kunsthistorischesmuseum
• Bari, Museo Civico

Image producers

• Laura Bennetto and colleages at Reading's ITS-Media
• Steve Wallis at CPL

Former curators and assistant curators of the Ure Museum

• Prof. Jane Gardner supported us and provided important memories at every stage.
• Amanda Hart got the ball rolling (and did the hard work) on our application for museum registration in 2001
• Gusty Hawkins was project manager for our Audience Access Development Project in 2003, paid for by SEMLAC (Southeast Museums Libraries and Archives Commission), and published it along with Joy McAlpine Black (from SEMLAC). Thanks also to Gusty for help in applying for the AHRB (AHRC) grant that paid for half of this renewal

IT help

• Liz Owen created our website
• Brian Fuchs (Max Planck Institute for the History of Science) designed our current database
• Gabby Bodard (University College London) created the Museum's first database in the 1990s
• Peter Cunningham typed all of Jane Gardner's card catalogue into the database
• Chris de la Force (Reading) takes care of our server
• Leif Isaksen (University of Southampton / Oxford Archaeology) was our programmer for VLMA (Virtual Lightbox for Museums and Archives) in collaboration with MPIWG, funded by JISC as an e-Learning tool

Other Reading colleagues /departments

• Alastair Blanshard helped us narrow down and organize the themes
• Simon Crossley, as an undergraduate in the Typography Department, designed our logo and leaflet.
• Niki Dadou, as an undergraduate in the Typography Department, designed and produced our pamphlet for the Under-5s trail.
• The Committee on Museums, Archives and Collections, chaired by Prof. Michael Fulford, oversees our work.
• UMACS (University Museums Archives and Collections Service): Kate Arnold-Forster encouraged, co-wrote and signed the funding application; Bekky Moran, UMACS Learning Manager, taught us how to write and advised on much else.
• Soil science cleaned our sand, soil, and pebbles.
• Physics cut our glass and brackets.
• MERL: Robin Harrison made props for our display; Janet Audain and Nancy Fulford helped laminate our leaflet text.
• Typography: Gerry Leonidas helped with the Greek letters.
• Insurance: John Fisher and Claire Purdy
• Development and Alumni Relations: Sean Horan and Brenda Morris
• Communications: Craig Hillsley
• Facilities Management Directorate: Stephen Jenkins

Also of interest

• Heledd Straker and Rhiannon Looseley, as volunteers in the UMACS summer volunteer scheme (funded by the UoR Teaching and Learning Development Fund), created a small display of Ure Museum artefacts in the foyer of the University Library
• With support from Annette Haworth's i-Opener Zoe Watson, MERLs archivist, provided us with an archive strategy, in June 2005.
• A bursary from University Committee for the Arts supported the scanning and other archival work of Shweta Wahi, Eleni Skrekou and Abigail Algar in Summer 2005.

  Section links: General Information | Opening Hours & Directions | Accommodation | Contact Us | Events | Renewal 2005 | Press Section | Research Enquiries | Photograph Service | Copyright notice | Website Accessibility | [Back to top of page and navigation menus]