Hello! We’re Hannah and Holly. During our time here we will be working on a research database for the human remains, recording objects’ details, digitising documents and evaluating visitor survey responses. If you see us around the museum over the summer, come say hi. We’re enjoying working with the team and learning from their experiences in the heritage and museums sector. 

Hannah is studying a Masters in Public History at Royal Holloway. She specialises in creating historical outputs for a range of audiences and exploring how the public can have more ownership over history. She’s interested in women’s and LGBTQ+ history. She’s looking forward to discovering new stories within the Mary Rose’s collection and exploring the largest collection of Tudor objects in the world. She’s also excited to engage with the public to understand how they experience the museum. 

Holly recently completed the second year of her undergraduate degree in Creative Writing and History at the University of Chichester. She typically focuses her studies on twentieth century European history and gender history. However, during her last semester she undertook work experience at Fishbourne Roman Palace. She’s looking forward to building on that experience at the Mary Rose Trust, especially given a childhood love of the Tudors. In addition to this, she’s excited to learn about the incredible work done with the human remains through the creation of a research database. 
 

Hello! We are Isabella and Sian, and we are both in our second year at Durham University undertaking a Masters in the Conservation of Archaeological and Museum Objects.

Sian has recently finished a 9-month placement at the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) Sian is interested in working with artefacts such as leather, composite artefacts, large objects and marine metals. She is keen to learn new skills and working with different materials that challenge her ability, and has enjoyed working at a maritime site.

Isabella recently completed a placement in Denmark at the Bevaringscenter Fyn conservation lab. She is interested in organic materials and their responses to moisture. In particular, she would like to work more with skin, fur, leather, and hair.

Last month we got to see the Mary Rose up-close, and the conservation team told us about the exciting tasks they have planned for us. From now until September, we will be cleaning the ship, monitoring the wood for signs of movement, and researching new options for conservation treatments. We have already started working on a timeline of the conservation of the Mary Rose which will be used by the museum to get a better understanding of the ship’s treatment history. We are also looking forward to performing preventive care for the ship, promoting the ongoing conservation work of the museum and working with the wider collection.

We have a lot to learn from the placement and can’t wait to work more with our supervisors, Sarah Coggins and David Pearson, and the wider team!