British Museum Study Day talk: Keeping Magic Live
Fiona Candlin, Senior Lecturer in Museum Studies, took part in a study day at the British Museum on the 15th of March on 'Encountering the Sacred in Museums'.
Fiona Candlin, Senior Lecturer in Museum Studies, took part in a study day at the British Museum on the 15th of March on 'Encountering the Sacred in Museums'.
Fiona's talk 'Keeping the Magic Alive' explored the reactions provoked by a Witchcraft Museum she visited as part of her research on Micromuseology.
She explains: 'After visiting the Museum of Witchcraft in Boscastle, Cornwall, Mr Smith wrote and apologised. 'I am afraid that we did not leave a donation.' He then described a series of minor misadventures which he attributed to his lack of generosity. The envelope contained some money and he hoped that it would remedy the situation.
The owner and curator, Graham King, laughed when he showed me this and similar letters. 'What do they think we are?' he asked. 'This is a museum'. Nonetheless, I have some sympathy. The Witchcraft Museum is a subtly unsettling place and like the apologetic visitors, I also felt that its collections needed to be treated with some caution. This paper considered why the Witchcraft Museum prompts such a reaction.'
Fiona teaches on the BA History of Art, MA History of Art and MA Museum Cultures.