British Museum shows ancient collections to Shinfield public

The University of Reading and British Museum have launched a new annual lecture series at the British Museum Archaeological Research Collection (BM_ARC) in Shinfield.

The inaugural Barker Lecture, held at the facility at Thames Valley Science Park, brought together academics, curators and members of the public to explore the partnership between the two organisations and see behind the scenes to learn about the historic objects there.

BM_ARC is a state-of-the-art storage and research facility housing a large proportion of the British Museum’s ancient world collections. These include world-renowned archaeological objects such as ancient sculpture, mosaics and historic cast collections. 

The partnership, which began in 2018, has created opportunities for research collaboration, student placements, doctoral studentships and public access to collections previously stored across different museum departments.

Professor Duncan Garrow from the University’s Department of Archaeology spoke about research collaborations and opportunities for students, while Kathryn Godwin, Senior Collection Manager at the British Museum, outlined plans for future public access. Attendees were given a tour of the building and enjoyed a drinks reception.

The annual lecture series has been made possible through the generous support of Graham and Joanna Barker.

Dr Beth Steiner, research facilitation manager at the University of Reading, who chaired the event, said: “The partnership with the British Museum is an example of how collaboration fuels creativity, and ensures our research into the past matters today and in the future. Having these incredible collections here in Shinfield creates wonderful opportunities for students and researchers, and is a source of pride to our local community.”

The environmentally friendly BM_ARC building runs only on electricity, with solar panels providing approximately 30% of its energy needs.

The lecture is part of a wider programme of events run by the British Museum at the BM_ARC site, which is not generally open to the public. The Museum will also facilitate visits for local secondary schools later in spring 2026.