Treasure valued at £3.3m
The Treasure Valuation Committee has agreed a record £3.285m price for the Staffordshire Hoard. The sum will be split evenly between landowner Fred Johnson and Terry Herbert, who discovered the hoard. Stoke’s Potteries Museum & Art Gallery and Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, which aim to acquire the 1,500 objects, have launched a fundraising campaign.
Slavery museum lauded
Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum has received an “honourable mention” from Unesco. The museum was singled out for its efforts to commemorate the lives of enslaved Africans. It was also praised for its work to fight the legacies of slavery.
Art Fund Prize judges
Broadcaster Kirsty Young will chair the panel judging the £100,000 Art Fund Prize this summer. She will be joined by museums and heritage advisor Kathy Gee; A C Grayling, professor of philosophy at Birkbeck College; Steve Jones, professor of genetics at University College London; former BBC communications director Sally Osman, now a consultant; Lars Tharp, Foundling Museum director; and artist Jonathan Yeo.
Mosi revamp under way
Work has started on a £7m revamp of Manchester’s Museum of Science & Industry (Mosi). The project, due for completion in August, will reclaim more than 1,000 sq metres of space by removing ramps and moving lifts and stairwells. Four classrooms and a gallery detailing the city’s industrial achievements, Revolution Manchester, will be added, while the hands-on Experiment section will be expanded.
