What’s an attribution, you ask? It’s the act of ascribing an artwork to a particular artist (if the painting isn’t signed) or as a depiction of a particular event (if it isn’t specifically identified by the artist). To attribute a painting to an artist one must be very knowledgeable about the artist’s oeuvre. To make an attribution to an event one must be a VERY careful and detail-oriented researcher.

Today is International Women’s Day! Recently, I learned the stories of a few amazing women in maritime history and I thought today would be a perfect day to introduce them to you.

In the catalog I noticed a Japanese pillar clock, called a shaku dokei, up for auction. While updating the value I noticed a name on the clock’s storage box—’C. E. Thorburn, USN’. Whenever I run across a name, especially one this unique, I immediately try to see if I can uncover the history of the original owner.

The Mariners’ Museum version of the twelve days of Christmas to celebrate Dollar Admission and the holidays and today, a few of our Museum guests helped me illustrate it.

Recently, I’ve been working on several items that are going out on loan to various institutions next year. While only a couple of these projects will be very treatment intensive (probably more on those later…), I thought I’d share an example of the routine care and due diligence paid to every artifact prior to loan. Every little consideration is important to ensure the safety of an object while it is being appreciated elsewhere.

These are no ordinary cabinets though…they are “Delta” cabinets that are museum specific storage equipment able to maintain a hermetic seal and therefore, a microclimate!!

Welcome back Blackfish Dart, object number WH 38!! Returning to the museum after a 58 year vacation that had you traveling from Newport News, Virginia to Tennessee and then back again!!!