The Lives of the Objects

Collecting Design

Tristram Hunt editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:V & A Publishing

Published:31st Dec '19

Should be back in stock very soon

The Lives of the Objects cover

In this intriguing insight into the work and history of a museum, V&A director and historian Dr Tristram Hunt brings together ten renowned V&A curators to tell the stories behind ten of their most treasured objects. 'Tipu's Tiger' (an almost life-size wooden semi-automaton mauling a European soldier), the 'Great Bed of Ware' (an Elizabethan bed for 8 people) and a Shakespeare First Folio are among the featured highlights whose route to the V&A collections are entertainingly revealed. Through these stories, this insightful history of museum curation - a world of careful study and sometimes remarkable fortuity - shows how the priorities of a museum are shaped and change over time. Published to explore in more depth some of the stories featured in the BBC six part series Secrets of the Museum.

'...full of fascinating, if occasionally tragic and controversial, tales of acquisitions.' Ciara Dossett, Daily Mail, 6th February 2020

ISBN: 9781851779727

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

256 pages