A new digital museum in the Isle of Man giving you unprecedented access to Manx National Heritage Collections.

Manx National Heritage is inviting members of the public to visit their latest development at the Manx Museum, the iMuseum. Situated along the road at Kingswood Grove, Douglas, this fantastic new facility gives digital access to museum collections and newspaper archives.

Currently the iMuseum gives access to major Manx newspaper archives from 1792 to 1960, an increasing number of images of Manx people and places dating from 1860 to the present day and the first phase of recordings from the National Sound Archives. Information from the war memorials of Douglas, Baptisms registered from 1800-1878 and the Isle of Man Census Index for 1841-1891 can also be found. Explore over 200 objects from the museum collections ranging from Costumes and Textiles to Zoology along with fascinating topics such as "Island at War" and "Home Life".

With all of these fascinating archives available in digital format for the first time, MNH invites the public to visit the iMuseum, try out some searches and give their feedback on the system and service. The iMuseum can help you piece together the past and it's free to use!

Opening Times: Wednesday to Saturday 10am-5pm, Thursday 10am-7pm. Visit our website for more information at http://www.gov.im/mnh

Here's an introductory video to the iMuseum to give you a taster of what it's all about!
http://www.manxtube.com/video/2914/iMuseum-part-1

Here are the short films created on a recent 'Who Do You Think You Are?' themed digital storytelling workshop. They were created using archive material from Manx National Heritage's extensive collections, together with personal photographs and a touch of creativity!

If you would like more information about taking part in a similar workshop please contact Katie King at the Museum on 01624 648000 or katie.king@gov.im.

Talk by Professor Ronald Hutton at the Gaiety Theatre, Douglas, Isle of Man.
Presented by Manx National Heritage.

In this lecture Professor Ronald Hutton looks at how the Isle of Man is famous as an island full of fairy traditions: in some ways it may be regarded as having the greatest concentration of them in the British Isles. It therefore seems a good place in which to address the question of what traditional fairy beliefs - those shared by ordinary people until recent times - actually were.

Lecture by Andrew Johnson, Field Archaeologist, Manx National Heritage

When the Island’s airport requires improvement to meet international safety standards, how do you safeguard the archaeological remains that are
already known to exist in the area, quite apart from those that are unsuspected?

Beginning with the first major discoveries at Ronaldsway in the 1930s,
and finishing with the remarkable finds of the last two years, this illustrated lecture considers the reality and necessity of rescuing 8,000 years of
history and culture from destruction.

Lecture by Peter Longworth - Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture

In the recent past, energy was used very frugally on the Island and what we did use, came locally. Sail power was utilised for fishing and trade, horsepower for farm work and deliveries and wood or peat for heating the home. In 2010 we are now reliant on very elongated supply chains for food, consumables and energy compared to 50-100 years ago.

This lecture will discuss how current thinking has come full circle with greater awareness of how reliant we are on others, and how making efforts to make use of natural resources like wind, biomass and home insulation can enable us to maintain modern comfort levels together with the importance of locally sourced food.

In October 2009 Howard Parkin of Manx National Heritage hosted a video conference between US astronaut Nicole Stott and 150 students from the Isle of Man’s Secondary Schools.

The signal traveled 159,000 kms from Manx Museum in Douglas to the International Space Station in orbit around the Earth.

Public lecture by Charles Guard at the Manx Museum

In the early hours of 3rd December 1909 one of the Isle of Man Steam Packet’s most popular ships, the SS Ellan Vannin, sank with all lives lost at the mouth of the River Mersey.

Charles Guard gives an illustrated talk at the Manx Museum in Douglas, in which he explores the circumstances surrounding the sinking of the ship, and looks at the many theories current at the time. He recalls the passengers and crew who were lost, and recounts the stories of how others nearly sailed that night, but fate intervened to save their lives. 

Continue the story of the Ellan Vannin tragedy at bit.ly/8Zy9Xu

Art and creativity can flourish in many places and strangely enough, during the Second World War, the Isle of Man was a hive of creative and artistic activity, most of which took place behind barbed wire. This artistic legacy and the work of other refugee artists is the subject of this illustrated lecture entitled Forced Journeys: Artists in Exile in Britain, c. 1933-45 at the Manx Museum by the curators Sarah MacDougall and Rachel Dickson from the Ben Uri Gallery in London.

More information about this lecture at bit.ly/9YeOYU

Six members of the Friends of Manx National Heritage took part in the Manx Museum’s first digital storytelling workshop this week. During the ‘Hear My Story’ workshop participants learnt how to write and produce their own personal story, using creative writing techniques and storyboarding exercises. Their personal photographs were scanned and used as the basis for their story. During the afternoon the participants learnt how to use movie making software to create their very own digital stories, with fantastic results.

If you are interesting in making your own ‘digital story’ please contact Katie King at the Manx Museum on 648000.

Public lecture by Professor Ronald Hutton at the Manx Museum
Friday 15th January 2010