25 Mar 2020
Dealing with self-isolation: a desert island guide from the real Robinson Crusoe
Think you're struggling with social distancing? At least you haven't started singing to goats... Curator Jeremy Michell uncovers the remarkable real-life story of island isolation which inspired Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe.
13 Mar 2020
The Discovery of Uranus
Learn more about how William Herschel discovered Uranus in 1781, the first new planet that had been discovered since antiquity
06 Mar 2020
The Quay to Knowledge: Life in the Caird Library
Library Assistant Shane McMurray reflects on his role and reveals what it's like to work in the Caird Library.
01 Mar 2020
Weathervanes at the Royal Observatory Greenwich
Discover the history and stories behind the Royal Observatory's weathervanes
21 Feb 2020
New discoveries from the wrecks of HMS Erebus and Terror
Archaeologists exploring the shipwrecks of HMS Erebus and Terror have recovered over 350 objects from the lost Franklin expedition.
06 Feb 2020
The Royal Humane Society and the gift of lifesaving
In 1909, naval seaman Thomas Bouttell risked his own life to save a passenger who was fleeing a ship that was ablaze off the coast of Malta. For his bravery, he was awarded with the Royal Humane Society's Stanhope Gold medal, which was donated to the National Maritime Museum some 60 years later. The accompanying certificate is part of the Caird Library's manuscript collection.
03 Feb 2020
The Five Women who made it into “Letters to W.S. Lindsay from Men of his time’’
William Schaw Lindsay (or W.S. Lindsay) was British merchant and ship owner. He was a liberal MP for Tynemouth and North Shields, as well as Sunderland.Many of his papers and correspondences were purchased by the National Maritime Museum in 1988. The collection consists of nearly all of the papers Lindsay left to him family.