ACCOUNTS, &C., OF THE BRITISH MUSELM. 30 



and sun-dials, and a section of the wall-cases has been provided with new fittings for the 

 clocks, astrolabes, &c. The large clock made by Isaac Habrccht was of loo great a size 

 to find a place in this room, and it has therefore iieen placed at the head of the staircase, 

 a position in which it is seen to great advantage. Tliis clock, the whole of the watches, 

 and some of the sun-dials, i)ave been provided with labels, and the labelling of ihe rest 

 of the series is being continued. 



Asiatic Saloon. The contents of wall-cases, Nos. 33-54, consisting of Japanese pottery 

 and porcelain, have been removed, cleaned, and replaced. The cases have been dis- 

 tempered, and the edges of the doors covered with velvet where necessary, and the locks 

 have been examined. 



Advantage has been taken of the presence in Knglaud of Professor E. S. Morse, of 

 Salem, Massacliusetts, a high authority on Japanese wares, to examine the collection of 

 Japanese pottery, and with his friendly aid, to revise the attributions of some of tlie 

 specimens. 



Glass and Ceramic Giil/erij. The completion ot the arrangement of tliis gallerv, and 

 its opening to the public, were recorded in the Return for last year, for reasons there 

 .stated, although actually occurring during the year here dealt witli. 



A panel in a door concealing a hydrant has been inscribed with the names of the 

 principal donors to these sections, and a label has been written for the bust of Madame 

 du Boccage. Six Delft tiles, a portrait of Josiah ^^'edgwood, and an etched glass panel, 

 have been framed. 



The recent additions have been provided with card labels. 



Ethnographical Gallery. The three extensive series from the Andaman Islands, the 

 Nicobar Islands, and from the Sakais and Semangs of the Malay Peninsula, have been 

 arranged in tlie sections to Avhich they belong. The sections of Easter Island, New 

 Zealand, Hervey Islands, East Central Africa, Abyssinia, and that of Japanese armour, 

 have been examined and the specimens cleaned, and where necessary, re-arranged. The 

 trophies of Australian clubs hare been re-arranged. The specimens exhibited on the 

 tops of the wall-cases have been twice examined and cleaned. 



The collection of Japanese arms and armour has been examined, and a rough slip 

 catalogue has been made, with the assistance of Mr. Masayuki Kataoka. 



An oil painting of a Malagasy has been placed in a frame and labelled; and an ancient 

 Mexican mask of stone has been mounted on a plinth and labelled. 



The registration has been proceeded with, and 1,755 objects registered. 



Two hundred and sixty-six ethnographical specimens have been described for the per- 

 manent Slip Catalogue, with a drawing of each object. 



One hundred and sixty-six card labels have been printed with the hand press in the 

 department, with duplicates of each. 



Two hundred and ninety-two mahogany mounting tablets have been made; one mount- 

 ing board and ninety-six small tablets covered with paper; and a plaster cast has been 

 put upon a plinth and labelled. 



The series of Oriental inscribed gems in the department has been arranged, and the 

 COfiying and translation of the inscriptions are in progi'ess. 



The Payne Collection of Roman antiquities from Kent, and the Saxon objects from 

 Taplow have been re-arranged. 



The old inventories of the department, prepared by Dr. Birch in 1835-1845, have been 

 examined, classified, and divided according to the present arrangement of the departments 

 of Antiquities. 



II. — Acquis it/ n s . 

 (1.) Early British and Prehistoric Antiquities : — 



A pierced axe hammer of stone and a jet button from a harrow on Huggate Wold, East 

 Riding, Yorkshire, and a bronze spearhead found in the Thames at Hampton, presented 

 by A. W. Fraaks, Esq., C.B. 



A circular bronze shield with bosses, found at Athenry, County Donegal, a number of 

 bronze celts from Ireland, and an amber bead engraved with what are stated to be 

 Ogham letters ; from the Londesborough Collection. 



Thi'ee flint saws with curved edges, found at Murlough, Uundrum, County Down, 

 presented by the Marquis of Downshire. 



Specimen of ancient British " ring money," formed of alternate bands of gold and 

 silver, found at Dorchester, Dorset. 



A Late Celtic iron sword in its bronze sheath, found in tlie bed of the Thames, and 

 engraved in '• Horte Ferales " pi. XV. From the Londesboiough (Collection. 



Twenty-two vessels of pottery, chiefly cinerary urns, of Late Celtic period, found in a 

 cemetery at Aylesford, Kent, with antiquities of bronze already in the Museum. 



The foreign illustrations of this section have received an Important accession in a 

 collection of antiquities, found on the sites of pile dwellings in Savoy, of which the 

 Museum had not before obtained any specimens. These objects are chiefly of the Bronze 



0.8l. Ji 4 Period, 



