Rachel Berridge

Senior conservator

Conservation of metal artefacts

Department: Conservation and Scientific Research

Telephone: +44 (0)20 7323 8336
Email: rberridge @ thebritishmuseum.ac.uk

Rachel is a senior conservator of metal artefacts with special responsibilities for the Departments of Asia and Africa, Oceania and the Americas. Rachel is also responsible for the historical metalwork collections from the Department of Prehistory and Europe, including the Waddesdon Bequest and Hull Grundy collections (Galleries 45–48).

Her duties include the conservation and restoration of objects for loan, exhibition, storage and publication, including the examination, documentation, survey, and loan assessment of the collection. Rachel has worked on historical and archaeological objects from all of the Museum's collections. She specialises in historical conservation and restoration with special interests in jewellery, Japanese armour, Asian metalwork and ethnographic collections, especially mixed media artefacts.

Rachel trained as a jeweller and silversmith before gaining a BA (Hons) in 3-Dimensional Design at Manchester Metropolitan University (1993) and a diploma in the Conservation and Restoration of Metalwork from West Dean College (1996). She joined the metals section at the British Museum in February 1998.

Current British Museum projects

Survey of the Asian arms and armour store.

Assessment of objects for conservation in Galleries 46–48.

Conservation of the Waddesdon Bequest collection, Gallery 45.

Research into conservation and long term storage of a collection of plastic shadow puppets in collaboration with conservation research.

Previous British Museum projects

Surveys and conservation of the Greek and Roman lead collection.

Survey and conservation of the Chinese copper alloy collection.

Conservation of an Ethiopian hat – textile and metal – in collaboration with organics conservation.

Conservation of the Hull Grundy jewellery collection, Gallery 47.

Restoration of the Hawkeden helmet – designed and made a detachable support system for the broken brow guard.

External fellowships/ honorary positions/ membership of professional bodies

Member of the Institute of Conservation (ICON)

Publications

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