MONEY & MEDALS
Leeman Road
York
YO26 4XJ
tel: +44 (0)1904 686256
website: www.nrm.org.uk
email: [email protected]
Contact details: John Clarke, Assistant Curator;
Ed Bartholomew, Senior Curator
Date of visit: 7 July 2015
Nature and extent of collection
Around 3,200 pieces. The National Railway Collection is Britain’s largest single body of historic railway material. The Numismatic Collection covers the period from the early 19th century to the present day with a small amount of early material discovered during railway construction work.
All numbers below are estimated
Roman coins: 4
British coins: 15
European coins: 6
Medals (commemorative or milirary:
255 Commemorative
214 Awards
50 Gallantry & War Service
33 Long Service
43 Union
Paranumismatica:
Paper train tickets
30 Metal Tickets
600 Directors Passes
50 Tokens
200 Pay checks
Whistle made from coins
Other:
1681 Badges (predominantly war service and union badges)
5 gold coin change machines
Remains of cash bowl containing 1d coins found after Brussels Exhibition fire in 1910
Mass of coins welded together as a result of bombing raid on York Station in 1942
Balance coin tester from Newport Dock Street Station
Set of sovereign brass weights from Hunslet Lane Goods for weighing gold coins
2 Money box harnesses worn by collecting dogs
Specific strengths: Mid 19th to early 20th century railway commemorative medals.
Library: We have the UK’s most comprehensive railway library which is comprised of 25,000 books. There are however only a handful of books that have been published relating to railway numismatics
Databases
Database used: Mimsy XG
Proportion of collection on database: 98%
How much detail in database entries? Description and name of recipient if applicable but little or no information about why medal was awarded.
Are images incorporated? All the medals have been photographed and we have recently begun to link the images to the database.
Is the database accessible to the public? Yes.
Is the database publicly accessible online? Yes: http://collectionsonline.nmsi.ac.uk/
Display
Are there permanent numismatic displays? No.
Is numismatic material incorporated into more general displays? Yes.
Is there a facility for temporary exhibitions? Yes.
Have there been numismatic exhibitions in the past? If so, what? Yes, ‘Brave Railwaymen’ in 1988.
Access to the collection
Is there a study facility? Yes, we have a research centre called Search Engine.
Is equipment (balances, magnifying glasses, etc.) provided? No.
Public engagement with numismatic collection
Is there a handling collection? No.
Are numismatic collections used in Education sessions? No.
Do numismatic collections feature in gallery talks, lectures? No.
Are there other engagement activities based around numismatic collections? No.
ID and public enquiries
Does the museum offer a service for identifying objects and other public enquiries? Yes, via Search Engine.
Curatorial knowledge
Is there any numismatic expertise in-house? If so, who, and in what areas? No.
Is there access to external expertise? If so, who and in what areas? No.
If there is expertise in-house, is there a willingness/capacity to share that with other museums? N/A