This Roman Sculpture is NOT on display at the British Museum (currently)

In 1865, a selection of objects in the British Museum was registered in ‘The Secretum’ – a catalogue of objects deemed unsuitable for display because they were seen as being ‘morally dangerous material’. As this was Victorian England, it probably doesn’t shock you that most of the objects were sexual in nature. The Roman sculpture of a nymph and satyr was one of these objects. Join former catalogue manager (now a curator in the Department of Greece and Rome) Vicky Donnellan on a journey through the exhibition and cataloguing history of this Roman sculpture, since its rediscovery 250 years ago. This is a deep dive into the different ways an object has been catalogued over time, showing that the process of cataloguing objects is not straightforward, objective or unchanging. Catalogue records are a combination of our current understanding of the past and, more potently, the values and perceptions of those in charge of cataloguing at any one time. GENUINE CONTENT WARNING: This video focuses on a classical depiction of attempted sexual assault, which is shown early in the video and throughout, and features other ancient sexually-themed objects. Updated Roman Nymph and Satyr object record: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/G_1805-0703-2 00:20 Roman Nymph and Satyr Sculpture Townley British Museum 1:14 What is a Nymph? 2:00 Nymph head restoration 2:55 Breaking down a Museum Number 3:21 Archives of the British Museum Reading Room 3:57 Townley’s original description of the Nymph and Satyr 4:06 When and where was the Nymph and Satyr found? 4:27 Was the head missing when the Nymph and Satyr was discovered? 4:48 Who restored the head of the Nymph? 5:40 Classical sculpture collecting in 1700s 6:20 Where did Townley keep his sculptures? 7:50 Townley’s descriptions of the Nymph and Satyr 08:38 When did the Townley Collection enter the British Museum? 09:25 When was the Nymph and Satyr taken off display? 10:31 The British Museum Secretum 11:50 Readdressing the sculptures content 12:20 How does the British Museum register objects? Image attributions: Bust of Charles Townley @3:20 - Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Melpomene (Hall of the Muses) @8:30 - Yair Haklai, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Nymph and Satyr on Exhibition @12:00 - Romerin, CC-BY-3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Nymph and Satyr on Exhibition @12:07 - Joanbanjo, CC-BY-3.0, via Wikimedia Commons