MUSEUM AUTHORITY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23113, 11 August 1938, Page 4

MUSEUM AUTHORITY

WOMAN'S ACHIEVEMENT FIRST NATIONAL APPOINTEE director of department The first woman keeper of a department in any of the national museums is IVliss Margaret Longhurst, who was recently appointed keeper of the Department of Architecture and Sculpture at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Miss Longhurst is recognised as a leading authority on ivories, Italian sculpture and Byzantine art, and has travelled widely, acquiring all the knowledge she could on those subjects. She went to the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1919 as a voluntary worker and was asked by Sir Eric Maclaglen, then keeper, of the Department of Architecture and Sculpture and present director of the museum, to do some cataloguing for him. She was appointed assistant-keeper in 192<i and has been there ever since. Miss Longhurst's catalogue of the ivories in the museum occupies two huge volumes and took years to complete. She also completed the • catalogue of Italian sculpture begun by Sir Eric Maclaglen. Miss Longhurst has advised about the acquisition of many objects now in the museum, and last year went to France to inspect a vast romanesque window with three arches. Action was taken on her report, and the window, acquired through the Art Collections Fund, now stands in the cast hall of the museum. In her now post Miss Longhurst will make recommendations to the director as to important acquisitions to her department. She will also supervise the task of erection of the pieces, and will have to keejT open a keen and expert eye for the detection of forgeries.