Professions and past times: the British ordnance office establishment and the investigation of Mediterranean antiquities, c.1800–1859

Abstract

The nineteenth century has long been seen as a century where European powers were acquiring antiquities for display in their national museums. At the forefront of this trend was the British Museum which worked in conjunction with the Foreign Office and Admiralty to bring them back to Britain. Yet current historiography of the region has ignored the role played by another leading government department, the Ordnance Office. The establishment of a permanent British military presence on Malta and in the Ionian Islands had a transformative effect on the study and acquisition of ancient, classical and medieval antiquities from the region as personnel from the civil and military establishments were now able to engage with them at first hand.