Philip Attwood

Curator of Medals

Commemorative and art medals, renaissance to present day

Department: Coins and Medals

Telephone: +44 (0)20 7323 8607
Email: pattwood @ thebritishmuseum.ac.uk

Philip Attwood has responsibility for the Museum’s collection of around 70,000 medals, comprising commemorative and art medals from the Italian Renaissance to contemporary works produced today by artists around the world.

The collection includes many superb examples of medallic art, and its quality, size and range give it an unrivalled international importance. His work has focussed particularly on Italian sixteenth century and British nineteenth century medals, but he has also written numerous articles on other medallic subjects.

He also curates the British Museum’s collection of nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first century badges, which is international in its scope but is particularly strong on late twentieth century British political badges. He oversees the exhibitions and acquisitions programmes of the Department of Coins and Medals and coordinates the Museum’s Modern Group, an informal body of curators with responsibility for contemporary material.

Current British Museum projects

Philip is currently preparing an exhibition to be shown at the British Museum in 2009 entitled Medals of Dishonour, which will focus on the medal as an indicator of dishonour and notoriety. Historical medals will be shown alongside contemporary medals by internationally renowned artists.

He is also editing for publication The diary of Leonard Wyon, 1853-1867.

Previous British Museum projects

British Museum exhibitions curated by Philip Attwood include Modernism in French medal design (1997) and Reflections of Glory: the medallic art of 16th-century Italy (2002).

External fellowships/ honorary positions/ membership of professional bodies

Secretary of the British Art Medal Society www.bams.org.uk and the editor of the society’s journal, The Medal, which contains articles on historical and contemporary medals and their makers.

Honorary curator of the medal collection of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, London www.cutlerslondon.co.uk, 

UK vice-delegate to the Fédération Internationale de la Médaille www.fidem-medals.org.

Publications

P. Attwood, Artistic circles: the medal in Britain 1880-1918, exhibition catalogue (London: British Museum Press, 1992)

P. Attwood, In the round: contemporary art medals of the world, exhibition catalogue (London: FIDEM XXIII, 1992)

P. Attwood, British art medals 1982-2002 (London: British Art Medal Trust, 2002)

P. Attwood, Italian medals, c.1530-1600, in British public collections (London: British Museum Press, 2003).

P. Attwood, Badges (London: British Museum Press, 2004)