BRITISH MUSEUM 



GENERAL PROGRESS AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 



Appointment of Director. 



His Majesty the late King was pleased to accept the resignation of the 

 Director and Principal Librarian, Sir George Hill, K.C.B., D.C.L., D.Litt., 

 F.B.A., and to appoint in his stead Mr. Edgar John Forsdyke, M.A., 

 F.S.A., Keeper of the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities. 



Visitors. 



The number of visitors to the British Museum shewed a marked 

 falling off in the first five months from the exceptional figures of the same 

 period of 1934, which were inflated by the crowds who came to see the 

 Codex Sinaiticus. For the last seven months of the year, however, there 

 was a large total increase, and the figures for the whole year (1,172,980) 

 were an approach to those for 1928 to 1931, when they rose steadily from 

 1,181,617 to 1,254,711, and higher than those for 1925-1927 and 1932-1933. 



The visitors attending the free lecture tours of the Official Guide 

 Lecturers were 21,597 (22,447 in 1934) ; and the visitors conducted by the 

 authorised guides, for whose services moderate fees are payable, numbered 

 9,752. 



Students. 



The Reading Rooms of the Library, including the Colindale News- 

 paper Library, the Map Room and the State Paper Room, received 

 235,857 visits as compared with 255,271 in 1934. The service of books to 

 the Reading Rooms continued to be carried on under difficulties caused 

 by reconstruction work in progress ; the number of volumes supplied to 

 readers was 2,056,979 as compared with 2,220,964 in 1934. 



40,388 Manuscripts and 3,301 Charters and Seals were issued in the 

 Students' Room of the Department of Manuscripts. 25,758 volumes 

 were consulted in the Department of Oriental Printed Books and 

 Manuscripts. 



There was a slight decrease in the total number of visits paid by 

 students to the various Departments of the Museum. 



Photography and Casts. 



The number of books issued for photography was 3,720, and of MSS., 

 1,652. From other Departments of the Museum 3,420 objects were 

 photographed. 



A new price list of casts was issued during the j'ear, and the production 

 of both casts and new moulds was steady. In the Department of Coins 

 and Medals 5,467 casts and 163 electrotypes of coins have been made, 

 and 240 casts from other Departments in the moulders' shop of the Greek 

 and Roman Department. 

 Studio. 



The output of the Photographic Studio is shown in the following 

 table : — 





1932 



1933 



1934 



1935 



Negatives 



Prints 



Lantern Slides 



Photostats 



3,234 



7,844 



545 



24,938 



3,374 



9,642 



1,075 



21,695 



3,429 



8,750 

 1,302 



22,993 



3,782 



9,533 



872 



24,424 



;:; 14713 









B 



