The British Museum Friends Explained

The British Museum Friends
Size:	160
Abbreviation:	BMF
Formation:	1968
Type:	Charity
Purpose:	Supports the British Museum with grants for acquisitions, and assists with research programmes, conservation, and new technologies throughout the Museum.
Location:	British Museum
Region Served:	England and Wales
Membership:	48,000 (March 2013)
Parent Organisation:	British Museum
Website:	https://www.britishmuseum.org/join_in.aspx
Remarks:	Current Chairman: David Norgrove

The British Museum Friends (BMF) is a registered charitable organisation in the UK with close links to the British Museum, and was set up in 1968. It provides funding in the form of grants to the British Museum in order to support the educational objectives of the Museum including to allow the Museum to acquire new items and collections,^[1] and assists with financing research programmes, conservation, and new technologies throughout the Museum.^{[2] [3]}

Acquisitions

Acquisitions supported by the BMF include the Nimrud Ivories, the Warren Cup,^[4] the Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant,^{[5] [6]} the Burney Relief,^[7] a Mycenaean terracotta group of three dancers in a ring, the gold mancus of Coenwulf,^{[8] [9]} the Ringlemere Cup, the Vale of York Hoard^[10] and two very rare gold coins of the Roman Emperor Carausius found in the North Midlands in 2007.^{[11] [12]}

Other acquisitions funded in whole or in part by the Friends during 2008 - 9 include the Chettle Park Hoard and twelve Greek papyri from Roman Egypt from the Oxyrhynchus Papyri.^{[13] [14]}

American Friends of the British Museum

The American Friends of the British Museum (AFBM) was set up in 1989 as a not-for-profit organisation whose principal purpose is raising awareness and financial support for the British Museum.^[15] Since its founding, American Friends of the British Museum has contributed over $30 million to support a variety of projects at the British Museum, including:

• The Queen Elizabeth II Great Court
• Special exhibitions
• Scholarly symposia
• Acquisitions
• Staff positions in the curatorial and education departments.^[16]

See also

• Friends of the British Library

External links

• The British Museum Friends website
• The British Museum Friends on archaeology.co.uk

Notes and References

1. BMF acquisitions trail.
2. https://www.britishmuseum.org/join_in/membership.aspx?gclid=CNzP7JK5uJ0CFVtm4wodiWObkw The British Museum Friends website
3. http://www.laboratorytalk.com/news/hit/hit158.html 'Electron microscopes assist work at British Museum' Laboratory Talk website 28 May 2008
4. https://www.britishmuseum.org/join_in/membership/how_your_money_helps.aspx 'Recent Acquisitions' British Museum website
5. http://curatorandcollector.com/?p=172 The Astrolabe on Curator and Collector August 2008
6. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2474799/Unique-medieval-astrolabe-saved-by-the-British-Museum.html 'Unique medieval astrolabe saved by the British Museum'
7. http://www.historytoday.com/MainArticle.aspx?m=30173&amid=30202241 'British Museum's new acquisition'
8. https://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/cm/g/gold_mancus_of_coenwulf.aspx 'Gold mancus of Coenwulf' on the British Museum website
9. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/culturevultureblog/2006/feb/08/struckgold Purchase of the Coenwulf coin
10. http://www.culture24.org.uk/history+%2526+heritage/archaeology/art71265 Vale of York Hoard on Culture 24 website
11. http://www.artdaily.com/index.aspint_sec=2&int_new=32263 BMF on artdaily.org
12. http://www.artfund.org/news/880 'Rare Roman coins acquired for British Museum and Derby with Art Fund help' on Art Fund website
13. https://www.britishmuseum.org/pdf/TAR08-09.pdf The British Museum Reports and Accounts for the Year Ended 31 March 2009
14. The British Museum Friends Annual Review to 31 March 2009
15. http://www.afbm.org/ Website of the American Friends of the British Museum
16. http://www.afbm.org/mission.html Mission of the AFBM