From the story of one of Rome’s most infamous emperors, to the assassination of Thomas Becket, see what special exhibitions are coming up in our 2021 programme. 

We are pleased to announce an exciting collaborative archaeology project, developed and delivered as part of the new Edo Museum of West African Art initiative in Benin City, Nigeria.

Museum Trustee Grayson Perry returns to the galleries with a work that celebrates the forgotten artists who made many of the objects in the collection. Find out more about the work, hear from the artist and see it on display in Room 17.

We mark a milestone of 1.5 million finds recorded by the Portable Antiquities Scheme with a look back at the top 10 treasures from the last 23 years.

As museums and galleries look towards reopening, we show how some of our partner venues across the UK have responded to the COVID-19 crisis – from collecting memories of lockdown to virtual exhibitions. Each entry has been written by a trainee on the Museum Futures programme, which aims to develop a new generation of diverse museum professionals.

‘The British Museum stands in solidarity with the Black community throughout the world. Black Lives Matter.’ A message from Director Hartwig Fischer.

Following the killing of George Floyd and the protests that are now taking place around the world, playwright, critic and former British Museum Trustee Bonnie Greer explores the ideas of trauma and reclamation, and how we need to use the past to build our future.

Several ancient Egyptian coffins and mummy cases have been found covered in a mysterious ‘black goo’. Dr Kate Fulcher, Research Assistant in the Museum’s Department of Scientific Research, explores what is this goo is made from, why it may have been used and what it can reveal about Egyptian funerary practice.

When UK Border Force discovered two trunks of suspicious-looking antiquities, Museum curators were on hand to work out whether they were fakes or the real thing. Here curator St John Simpson explores the illicit trade of fake antiquities…

Curator St John Simpson explains how the Museum is helping to fight the contemporary trade of looted antiquities across the globe.

Director Hartwig Fischer writes about his visit to some of the Museum’s National Partners and how the Museum collaborates with institutions all around the UK.

A group of eight historic objects from Tello seized in a Metropolitan Police raid are now going back to Iraq with the help of the British Museum.

For our new exhibition we’ve invited historian and Private Eye editor Ian Hislop to rummage through the Museum’s collection on a mission to investigate stories of satire and subversion…

The world’s oldest bridge, located in the south of Iraq, is soon to be to be saved for future generations thanks to the Museum’s pioneering emergency heritage management project.

For two weeks this April, the British Museum will become a stage for music, with performances taking inspiration from around the world.

New research has revealed the world’s earliest figural tattoos on two natural mummies in the British Museum, including the oldest known example of female tattooing.

We are delighted to announce a major partnership project with the University of Reading to develop a significant new collection storage and research facility.

Project Curator Kate Jarvis explains how a new partnership with Google enables us to share and study an extraordinary collection of 19th-century photographs and casts of ancient Maya sites and monuments.

The Museum’s Iraq Emergency Heritage Management Training Scheme began in 2015 to help combat the many threats to the country’s archaeology. Now, learn about some of the project’s important new discoveries.

Research Manager JD Hill talks about a brand new exhibition in Mumbai, the latest collaboration between the British Museum and museums in India.

On 8 November 2017, we were delighted to welcome Her Majesty The Queen to officially open the Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia.

A new exhibition, radio series and book will look at the nature of belief and how it has been important to all human societies.

Curator Sarah Vowles takes a closer look at a spectacular Florentine Renaissance drawing recently acquired by the Museum.

Ever wanted to take your favourite British Museum object home? Daniel Pett explains how the Museum is using pioneering 3D printing technology to produce replicas of some of its most iconic objects. 

Our Director Hartwig Fischer reflects on his first year here, and presents a new vision for the Museum’s collection in the 2016–2017 Annual Review.

We’re assuming you probably don’t know very much about the Scythians. But that’s OK! Ahead of our major exhibition opening in September 2017 we’ve compiled a handy beginner’s guide to these nomadic warriors, who galloped into the pages of history…

As the Frome Hoard is voted the nation’s top Treasure find of the last 20 years by Telegraph readers, Sam Moorhead, Finds Adviser for the Portable Antiquities Scheme, takes a look back at this remarkable discovery and how its legacy continues today.

2017 marks the 70th anniversary of Indian independence, and the emergence of India and Pakistan as independent nation states and is also the India-UK Year of Culture. To celebrate this, the British Museum is presenting a season bringing together different activity in London and across the UK, celebrating the many cultures of South Asia.

A major find where a musical instrument has been a key player. Treasure Registrar Ian Richardson has composed a little something to explain why this is literally hidden treasure!

Coming to a cinema near you this summer, the British Museum brings the works of Hokusai to the big screen.

The exhibition The American Dream: pop to the present is now open. Why is this extraordinary collection of modern and contemporary art at the British Museum?

For several years, the destruction of heritage sites in Iraq and Syria by Daesh (so-called Islamic State)* has filled the news. In response, the British Museum has been training Iraqi archaeologists in emergency heritage management.

Today we relaunch the British Museum blog. But why today? Find out how our history connects past, present and future, and watch Hartwig Fischer, Director of the Museum, explain a bit about the Museum and its role in an ongoing global conversation.

The new special exhibition for 2017, Hokusai: beyond the Great Wave (25 May – 13 August 2017), explores the work of Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849), considered by many to be Japan’s greatest artist.