Reconstructing the Lives of Two Victorian Women Though their Ancient Egyptian Collection.
Join us on Monday to hear a great lecture from Bryony Renshaw that recreates the lives of two notable Egyptophiles from the collections they amassed, many treasures from which are now in Macclesfield.
Free to members. Guests welcome £5 via Eventbrite here:
12th October: Bryony Renshaw
Fragments of Identity: Reconstructing the Lives of Two Victorian Women Though their Ancient Egyptian Collection.
In 1874 Marianne Brocklehurst and Mary Booth returned from their first trip to Egypt. The trip sparked a fascination with Egypt, both ancient and modern, which would see them spend the rest of their lives collecting and researching artefacts, befriending Egyptologists and building their own museum.
150 years later, new research into their collection is revealing fresh insights into the adventurous life Marianne and Mary shared. Each artefact they collected offers, not only a window into the ancient past, but also a glimpse into the minds of the women who collected them. This talk will explore how these fragments can be reassembled to reveal the forgotten story of these two remarkable Victorian women.
Bryony Renshaw has been researching the Egyptological collection of Marianne Brocklehurst and Mary Booth for over a decade. During this time she has gained an Archaeology BA, Egyptology MA and Art Gallery and Museum Studies MA. More broadly, her research focuses on women in ancient Egypt as well as women in early Egyptology. She is currently Senior Curator of Paradise Mill in Macclesfield, where Marianne and Mary’s collection is based.
