Sign in

National Trust Research

@ntresearch.bsky.social
680 followers 126 following 135 posts

News, stories, opportunities, and occasional memes from the National Trust's Research Team. You're welcome to contact us at research@nationaltrust.org.uk.

PostsRepliesMedia
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
There’s more to discover in Emile de Bruijn’s chapter from the new book ‘Placing China at the Courts of Europe 1700–1800’  www.degruyterbrill.com/document/isb...
degruyterbrill.com
Placing China at the Courts of Europe, 1700–1800
China, the country at the far end of Asia, occupied the European imagination throughout the 18th century, although only adventurous traders and intrepid missionaries had actually seen it for themselve...
030
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
In 1771 Thomas Chippendale supplied this clothes press to Sir Rowland and Sabine Winn of Nostell Priory, with painted decoration suggesting East-Asian lacquer. By this time the European imitation of Chinese style, or chinoiserie, had become a tradition in its own right.
The Nostell Priory 'Cloaths Press very neatley Japan'd green and Gold' - 1771 by workshop of Thomas Chippendale. ©National Trust Images/Andreas von Einsiedel
110
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
During the first half of the 18th century, Chinese paintings and prints began to be used as wall decoration in British interiors. The original meaning of these prints pasted onto the walls at Saltram was not understood, but they evoked the sophistication of China.
Chinese dressing room at Saltram house, Devon. ©National Trust Images/Chris Lacey
100
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
So what did that 18th-century shift in perspective look like? The interiors at Erddig demonstrate the impact of the taste for things Asian in early 18th-century Britain, including a state bed hung with embroidered Chinese silk and British-made furniture decorated to look like East-Asian lacquer.
State Bedroom at Erddig, Wrexham, Wales. ©National Trust Images/Andreas von Einsiedel
100
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Through case studies of interiors and objects at 7 @nationaltrust.org.uk country houses, explore how British perspectives on Chinese culture transformed over the 18th century from admiring Chinese culture without knowledge, to genuine interest marked by a problematic sense of superiority over China.
Blue ceramic vases in the Grand Staircase Hall at Petworth House and Park, West Sussex. ©National Trust Images/Megan Taylor
120
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
You can now explore Holly's findings for yourself in a new exhibition at Brockhampton: 'Ink & Ivory: Music and Girlhood in Georgian England.'
010
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Holly Lawson's PhD research is bringing a young Georgian girl's musical world to life through the study of the Abigail Barneby manuscript at Brockhampton. This project helps us better understand the experiences of women whose voices are often absent from the historical record.
120
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Excellent work!! 🙌
030
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
The National Trust Paint Sample Archive is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (@ukri.org)
010
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
With nearly 15,000 paint samples now gathered and catalogued, National Conservator Rebecca Hellen quite rightly encouraged attendees today to imagine the many research opportunities just waiting to be discovered in these drawers. We can’t wait to hear what they come up with.
111
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
The @nationaltrust.org.uk's new Paint Sample Archive opened its doors yesterday for project partners and collaborators to get a first look at the archive’s new facility in the Trust’s Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio.
121
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Have you heard the news? We're on Instagram: www.instagram.com/nationaltrus... Join us there to discover even more about research at the National Trust.
020
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Fascinating news from the archaeologists working at the Bath Assembly Rooms. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
'Layers of Roman history' found beneath Bath Assembly Rooms
Archaeologists say the fragmented finds expand the known extent of Roman occupation in Bath.
0103
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
We’re excited to be partnering with @teessideuni.bsky.social and @durham.ac.uk as part of this year’s @beinghumanfest.bsky.social national festival of the humanities (5-14 Nov). Find out more in our Green Corridors North East hub programme, now live at www.beinghumanfestival.org/being-human-....
beinghumanfestival.org
Being Human: Green Corridors North East
Led by Teesside University, Durham University and the National Trust
051
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
'While the reports covering [the work at Orford Ness] are now mostly declassified, finding them is often difficult.' Volunteer researchers are working behind the scenes at many @nationaltrust.org.uk properties... in this case solving a Cold War mystery. www.express.co.uk/news/uk/2249...
express.co.uk
Mystery concrete circle identified as base of WWIII warning system
(contains affiliate links)
062
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Congratulations! Fantastic news!! 🎉
020
Reposted by National Trust Research
University of Exeter's Environment and Sustainability Institute @uniofexeteresi.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Vacancy for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the @ukri.org @netpositivecentre.bsky.social and @uniexecec.bsky.social. Deadline 28 September. careers.exeter.ac.uk/vacancies/11... @cornwall.exeter.ac.uk
132
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Who fancies a quick journey into the archives to discover what 17th-century life was really like for the family and servants of @nationaltrust.org.uk's Hardwick Hall? A perfect way to start the weekend if you ask us.
040
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Fascinating new research using isotopic fingerprinting techniques has determined the 'Devil's Arrows' were moved 18km across Yorkshire from Brimham Rocks c.5,000-3,500 years ago. Read more here: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... And in the excellent thread from @nattrustarch.bsky.social below.
bbc.co.uk
Mystery of where Yorkshire Stone Age monuments came from solved
The Devil's Arrows actually came from different site several miles away from previously thought.
085
Reposted by National Trust Research
University of Exeter's Environment and Sustainability Institute @uniofexeteresi.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
On 14 September, join @renewbiodiversity.bsky.social and the Biodiversity and People Network for their hybrid, interdisciplinary event 'Perspectives on Environmental Memory: Philosophy, Literature, and Environmental Science.' forms.cloud.microsoft/pages/respon...
142
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
For the next two weeks, visitors to Nostell will have the rare opportunity to watch research in action as experts from the Hamilton Kerr Institute use macro X-ray fluorescence scanning to look beneath the surface of this treasured @nationaltrust.org.uk painting. www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...
theguardian.com
Public given rare access as Thomas More painting goes under microscope
Visitors to Nostell in West Yorkshire will get to see cutting-edge research into work considered the only faithful copy of Holbein masterpiece
0146
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
'The initiative was created to address complex environmental and societal challenges that no single organisation could solve alone.' Discover how research done through the @nationaltrust.org.uk's partnership with @exeter.ac.uk is making a difference for people and nature: tinyurl.com/4kx3kkan
ke.org.uk
KE Awards 2025 Case Study | Shaping Landscapes for People and Nature to Thrive: A Strategic Partnership - Knowledge Exchange UK
Learn how Exeter and the National Trust are driving nature recovery, biodiversity and climate resilience across the UK.
032
Reposted by National Trust Research
National Trust Archaeology @nattrustarch.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
NT's Senior National Archaeologist Hannah Fluck was recently interviewed for Radio 4's Artworks series "Above and Below: The Battle to Save Britain's Prehistoric Art". Listen here: bit.ly/3SpgENM
bbc.co.uk
Artworks - Above and Below: The Battle to Save Britain's Prehistoric Art - BBC Sounds
Eleanor Barraclough explores the threat from climate change to our ancient creative past.
15424
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Green Corridors North East, a major @nationaltrust.org.uk collaborative research project with @newcastleuni.bsky.social @teessideuni.bsky.social & @durham.ac.uk, is excited to be a Hub for this year's @beinghumanfest.bsky.social. Watch for future updates about how you can take part this November!
041
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
‘The Trust's libraries are very much queer spaces and demand to be celebrated as such.’ Read much more about Bob’s life and influence on National Trust libraries in Tim Pye’s article from ‘Library & Information History,’ free to read at www.euppublishing.com/doi/full/10....
euppublishing.com
‘The outward beauty of the shelves was my main object’: Robert Gathorne-Hardy and the National Trust's libraries as queer spaces | Library & Information History
This article explores the work of Robert Gathorne-Hardy (1902–73), the National Trust's first libraries adviser, within the context of the organisation's queer heritage. While recent Trust initiatives...
010
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
‘The aesthetic rearrangements that he personally undertook largely remain.’ And after Bob’s work with the Trust, his ‘mode for how a country house library should be presented was followed, and embraced by those who considered the books as little more than wallpaper.’
Visitors in the Library at Montacute House, Somerset. ©National Trust Images/James Dobson
110
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
And while, as Pye writes, ‘some of his approaches appear questionable to a twenty-first-century curator,’ Bob’s work resulted in libraries within whose ‘cases the volumes were exalted and could be admired behind locked, glazed doors, through which the gilt could shimmer.’
An abundance of gilt bindings in the Library at Attingham Park: the apotheosis of Bob's work for the National Trust. © National Trust Images/James Mortimer
110
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
In June 1948, Bob found the library at Stourhead in a terrible state, reporting that ‘the dust [on the shelves] has lain so thick and so long that in most cases the wood has become stained by it.’ Bob’s solution? ‘An aesthetic rather than a scholarly rearrangement of the volumes.’
The Library at Stourhead. The east wall, in which Bob placed ‘bindings that are pleasant to look at’, is on the left of the image. © National Trust Images/Dennis Gilbert
110
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
In his recent article, National Curator for Libraries at the @nationaltrust.org.uk Tim Pye discusses the life of Robert ‘Bob’ Gathorne-Hardy (1902-73), the Trust's first libraries adviser, a gay man, whose ‘role with the Trust has largely been forgotten and has certainly never been fully explored.’
Bob (in plus fours) in 1926; standing next to his brother, Eddie, and in front of Eardley Knollys. Photograph by Lady Ottoline Morrell. National Portrait Gallery Ax142501
110
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
‘In the seven decades since Bob last worked for the [National] Trust, its libraries have been passed through by tens of millions of visitors who have been unaware of his work and legacy, or that the books on the shelves “are physical manifestations of queer historical memory”.’ So, who was Bob? 🧵
Visitors in the Long Gallery at Blickling Estate, Norfolk. ©National Trust Images/Chris Lacey
140
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Shout-out to all our rangers on #WorldRangerDay! We couldn't do nature research without our expert ranger teams. They know landscapes and habitats better than anyone else, and work every day to find the best ways of caring for them. Thanks, @nationaltrust.org.uk rangers, you're the best.
2405
Reposted by National Trust Research
Dr Toby Driver @drtobydriver.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
An excellent day yesterday with @nattrustarch.bsky.social's David Thomas & the Early Mines Research Group at NT Dolaucothi Roman mines, Pumsaint ⛏️😮 Great to walk through Roman adit up to an ancient opencast where the excavations have revealed fire setting & an anvil stone 👌 📷 My own
0698
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Have you sent in your question for #AskAnArchaeologist Day yet?
030
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Congratulations Kerry!! 🎉
110
Reposted by National Trust Research
National Trust Archaeology @nattrustarch.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
This #HampshireDay we are celebrating the ongoing archaeological research at Hinton Ampner as part of larger nature recovery ambitions within the @nationaltrust.org.uk. 🧵
A team of archaeplogists kneeling on the edge of an archaeological feature in a shallow trench, waving their arms.
1225
Reposted by National Trust Research
RSPB @rspb.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
WE HAVE AVOCET NEWS!!! An Avocet spotted at RSPB Middleton Lakes has been confirmed as the oldest ever recorded in the UK. At 36 years old, it's lived more than five times longer than the species' average lifespan. First ringed in 1990, it's still out there doing Avocet things. Go on Avocet. 😍
An Avocet strides across the edge of a wetland, one leg lifted mid-step as if caught in an elegant strut. Its striking black-and-white plumage and long upturned bill stand out against a softly blurred backdrop of green reeds.
321429273
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
🥳The National Trust's fourth Annual Research Report is here! Learn all about how our research is helping us Restore Nature, End Unequal Access, and Inspire Millions. You can download the report from our Research Repository ⬇️ nt.iro.bl.uk/concern/repo...
A child looking through binoculars at Nunnington Hall, North Yorkshire 
©National Trust Images/Rebecca Hughes
0196
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
💡🌎⛅Interested in creating knowledge at the nexus of health and climate research? ⭐Are you an emerging leader from academia, public sector, NGO, charity, or business & creative industries? 📣Be part of the Net+ Leadership Academy - apply by Friday 26th June APPLY👇 netpositivecentre.com/training-edu...
netpositivecentre.com
Leadership Academy information - Net Positive Centre
010
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
📢One week left to apply to join our team as Postdoctoral Research Fellow! We're looking for a fantastic researcher to join our Nature Towns and Cities team and work in partnership with the @exeter.ac.uk @netpositivecentre.bsky.social. Find out more ⬇️ careers.nationaltrust.org.uk/OA_HTML/a/?_...
074
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
#academia #postdoc job alert! 📢 We're looking for a Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join our Nature Towns and Cities team and work in partnership with the @exeter.ac.uk @netpositivecentre.bsky.social. Fixed term for at least 2 years, £36,621 pa. ⬇️ careers.nationaltrust.org.uk/OA_HTML/a/?_...
020
Reposted by National Trust Research
National Trust Archaeology @nattrustarch.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
NT archaeologist Mark Newman and a team from the University of Bradford have been searching for clues about Inner Farne’s most famous and important inhabitant, St Cuthbert. You can find out more in Episode 3 of Hidden Treasures of the National Trust tonight on BBC Two at 9pm, or on BBC IPlayer.
A pele tower on Inner Farne, offering defence and accommodation for the monks of Durham Cathedral who managed the islands. ©National Trust Images/Rebecca Hughes A group of people sat in front of a building reviewing survey results on a laptop © Blast TV
0175
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Then, it was a mighty tree, a food, a medicine, a nation's cultural symbol. Now, it's a staircase in an English stately home. Researcher Elena of @bristoluni.bsky.social has written the fascinating life story of Dyrham's black walnut trees. plantpublichistory.blogs.bristol.ac.uk/2026/04/29/f...
021
Reposted by National Trust Research
RSPB @rspb.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Congratulations ! You have reached the Woodpigeon of encouragement. Great job! Keep going! 📷️ @carlbovisnature.bsky.social
A delighted-looking Woodpigeon perches among frothy white blossom, its soft grey-blue head tilted and bright pale eye wide with excitement. Its beak is open mid-call, clutching a petal or piece of blossom, adding to the wonderfully animated expression. The bird’s warm pink chest and distinctive white neck patch stand out against the blurred spring branches, giving the impression of a pigeon caught in an enthusiastic, blossom-fuelled pep talk.
738989
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Same, Magpie Inkcap mushroom, same. 📸NT Images / Rob Coleman
012110
Reposted by National Trust Research
British Library @britishlibrary.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Interrogate and unlock the second largest oral history collection held at the Library, in a doctoral fellowship in collaboration with ‪@researchnt.bsky.social‬ Find out more and apply by Friday 5 June. link.bl.uk/7ts
0189
Reposted by National Trust Research
Chris Bisson @bisschrisson.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
#worldbeeday Red Tailed, Carder and Buff Tailed, all battling against the wind for some flower grub! @nationaltrust.org.uk @bumblebeetrust.bsky.social
0102
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
This week is Solitary Bee Week 🐝 At Godrevy in Cornwall, we're working with @bisschrisson.bsky.social of @plymuni.bsky.social. He's researching how 'hemiparasitic' plants (that's plants that partly feed on others) can benefit pollinators like this hard-working little Miner Bee. 📸Chris Bisson
2358
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
From Saturday at Saltram, you can see this painting on display - Reynolds' first ever painting showing a person of colour - and find out more about the boy it depicts. It's been an honour to help recentre Boston Jersey (or should that be George?) and retell his story.
051
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Just leaving this here for anyone who's not seen it yet 👀 Come and help us get our Sound Archive ready to open to researchers and the public. Open to all current PhD students pre-submission, up to 6 months from September 2026. @nationaltrust.org.uk @britishlibrary.bsky.social
033
National Trust Research @ntresearch.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
If we miss your email this week, it's probably because we've been watching the most adorable feathery parents feeding their brand new chicks. Watch live now from the Longshaw Estate to add a bit of nature to your work day. @nationaltrust.org.uk #WindowtotheWild www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBM_...
youtube.com
Pied Flycatcher & Blue Tit – Nestbox neighbours LIVE from National Trust Longshaw Estate
YouTube video by National Trust
020