Stromness Museum

Bring back hyperlocal teapots and teasets! 🫖

Colour photo of retired Lighthouse Keeper Jim Budge, alongside the Bi-centenary 1786-1986 Lighthouses and Buoys chart from the Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses

Old B&W full-length photograph of (left to right) Lighthouse Keepers Jim Budge, Tom Rendall & Sinclair Craigie.

Today's the last day of Free February! We've seen lots of lovely visitors this month, inc. retired Lighthouse Keeper Jim Budge, part our 'Lighthouse Keepers & their Families' display. Jim kindly brought a Scottish Lighthouses and Buoys chart with him to donate to us.

🕝: We're open until 3.30pm.

TRANSECTS paper published and available online The first paper in the TRANSECTs project has been published and available online.

The first paper in the TRANSECTs project has been published and available online.

A collage of photographs from the Early Women Doctors in Orkney display in the Archive

Right now in the Archive you'll find a fascinating display all about early women doctors in #Orkney, with a selection of documents, photographs and other items.

You can visit the display during normal Archive opening hours and you can read more about it on our Blog at: orkneyarchive.blogspot.com

Sylvia Foxlee’s 1971 Portrait of Orkney’s Capt. ‘Big John’ Hourie. Oil painting.

Happy #ArtUK10thBirthday to @artukdotorg.bsky.social, home to one million artworks available to all. Including Sylvia Foxlee’s 1971 Portrait of Orkney’s Capt. ‘Big John’ Hourie at Stromness Museum, which features in our current Powered By People exhibition: tinyurl.com/47cyuysn

🎈 artuk.org 🎨

Islands Matter: #Faroese & #Shetlandic #Folklore
26 Feb, free online via @insuhi.bsky.social

Prof Jóan Pauli Joensen: “Water Beings in Faroese Folklore – Tradition & Change” & Prof Andrew Jennings: “From Fetlar to Foula – Norse Roots of Shetland Folklore”
www.uhi.ac.uk/en/research-...

Hourston Photographic Collection black and white photo: Ian MacInnes starting a boys race at a Stromness Academy sports day, on the Market Green, Stromness. Date unknown.

This week is the last week of Free February! Race on over to Stromness Museum while there's free entry for all visitors! We're open Mon-Sat at 11am-3.30pm. 👟

📷: Ian MacInnes starting a boys race at a Stromness Academy sports day. Date unknown. Hourston Photographic Collection ©️ Stromness Museum.

Black and white photo of Maureen Skinner feeding an otter, 1962, watched by the family cat.

As it’s National Love Your Pet Day, here’s a photo of Maureen Skinner feeding an otter in 1962, watched by her cat. The otter was rescued on Graemsay by the Lighthouse Keepers and taken to the Lighthouse Buildings, Stromness to be reared by the Skinners. 🦦 🍼 🐈 ©️ Hourston Photographic Collection

☕ 'When treated for ten minutes in cold water in the proportion of half an ounce of Carrageen to three pints of water and then boiled and strained it yields with or without spices a pleasant drink...' #seaweedstories

🔗For advice on harvesting seaweed, see: shorturl.at/EWZHt

Image of pressed Carrageen seaweed with handwritten notes by George Ellison, dated 1929 and collected from Birsay, Orkney.

For Orcadian naturalist George Ellison the value of Carrageen (aka Irish Moss) 'seems to depend in its being a pleasant digestable article of food' for people and animals. He collected this specimen in Birsay in 1929. #seaweedstories

For advice on harvesting seaweed, see: shorturl.at/EWZHt

Wahey! It's Buddo, the OG Neolithic whalebone figurine from Orkney!

Buddo says you're nearly home & dry.

Colour photo of the face of a Dry compass, circular wooden body; H. W. Laird, LEITH.

🧭 Find your way to Stromness Museum over Free February, while entry is free for all visitors for the whole month! We're open Mon-Sat at 11am-3.30pm.

✍️ PLUS, all those signing up to support the Museum by becoming a ‘friend’ in Feb will have the chance to win a £25 Stromness Museum gift voucher!

Image of pressed seaweed sample of desmarestia or acid weed. Collected in Orkney 1929.

Many seaweeds are edible and rather tasty. But one to avoid is desmarestia or acid weed, which has the remarkable ability to etch its own image onto rocks, like these ones in Birsay to be found at low tide. #seaweedstories

(For advice on harvesting seaweed, see: www.nature.scot/doc/advice-s...)

Specimen image of ‘Delesseria sanguinea’ pink seaweed from Stromness, collected and pressed in 1928.

Specimen image of Magnus Spence Herbarium sheet reference 330, ‘Bellis perennis L. Bellis perennis L. Daisy’.

Our Natural History Collections Curatorial Assistant Dr Gareth Squire and photographer Rebecca Marr have been busy digitising the catalogue of our herbarium and algarium recently, so we’ve a few #seaweedstories and #florafables for you in the pipeline!

Sperm whale tooth with a whaling incident depicted on one side and a polar bear on ice flow on the other. The whale is depicted surging up knocking men out of their small boats and a harpoon is flying. Water is being squirted out of the whale's blowhole. On the other side a fully rigged sailing ship is sailing past the polar bear which looks marooned on a piece of floating ice. Scrimshaw is made by carving into the tooth and then rubbing a mixture of chalk and ink into the lines to make the drawing stand out. Done as a pastime by many seafaring men.

Orkney's Antarctic whaling heritage will be explored in our 2026-7 exhibition, so watch this space for more stories of South Georgia!

📷: Scrimshaw on a sperm whale tooth with a 'whaling incident' depicted.

The @southgeorgiaht.bsky.social are currently stabilising Stromness Manager’s Villa. Elouise met their team at South Georgia Museum, in the old whaling station manager's house in nearby Grytviken. We sent photos of our Curator Janette for Elouise to show South Georgia Museum staff counterparts! 📷

Image of two map pins connected by a dotted line with text: 'These photos were taken on the same day at...Stromness Museum, Orkney...8000 miles!...South Georgia Museum (near Stromness), South Georgia.' Photos show Janette Park, Curator of Stromness Museum standing on Flaws Pier in Stromness and 4 staff members of South Georgia Museum standing in front of the Museum entrance.

❤️ A Tale of Two Stromnesses! ❤️ Elouise, who developed the Orkney Snorkel Trail with us, was recently in Stromness, South Georgia. The 'sooth' Stromness is 8000 miles away in the sub-Antarctic, where there's an old whaling station.

Specimen image of ‘Delesseria sanguinea’ pink seaweed from Stromness, collected and pressed in 1928.

Specimen image of Magnus Spence Herbarium sheet reference 330, ‘Bellis perennis L. Bellis perennis L. Daisy’.

Our Natural History Collections Curatorial Assistant Dr Gareth Squire and photographer Rebecca Marr have been busy digitising the catalogue of our herbarium and algarium recently, so we’ve a few #seaweedstories and #florafables for you in the pipeline!

Dr Jane Pottas in front of her presentation slide entitled ‘Mrs Miller’s seaweeds’ with images of pressed specimens.

Dr Jane Pottas in front of her presentation slide that reads ‘Herbarium - a collection of preserved algal specimens and associated data used for scientific study. Algarium - a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study.’

Newspaper article in The Orcadian on 12 Feb 2026 headlined ‘Museum catalogue to go online’ and featuring a photograph of Dr Gareth Squire.

It might be Friday 13th but we’re feeling very lucky here at Stromness Museum. Yesterday we hosted a fantastic talk by Dr Jane Pottas on herbaria and algaria, which included seaweed images from our current Natural History digitisation project, which featured in this week’s The Orcadian newspaper!

Poster that reads: The Orkney Natural History Society Museum SCIO (Stromness Museum) AGM will be held on Wednesday 4 March 2026 at 6.30pm in Stromness Museum. All are welcome to attend.

The Orkney Natural History Society Museum SCIO (Stromness Museum) AGM will be held on Wednesday 4 March 2026 at 6.30pm in Stromness Museum. All are welcome to attend.

Read all about us! 🗞️

U OK Hun?

Photo of Buddo selfie props in a Buddo mug, in front of a competition poster.

Peedie 2-dimensional Buddo’s for your #bestbuddoselfie! (See previous post for competition details and T&C’s.)

2 x Polaroid photo style images: First of the Skara Brae Buddo neolithic whalebone figurine with '#BestBuddoSelfie' handwritten along the bottom. Second of the prize bundle (copy of Terry Deary's book 'The Great Storm, 6 x A6 Buddo snowscape cards, a Buddo keyring, a Stromness Museum branded pen and pencil, and a set of 4 Ted Kellock A5 microscope rock slide cards) with 'Win a Buddo Bundle!' handwritten along the bottom.

Poster that read: HALF-TERM HOLIDAY COMPETITION We’d like to see your best Buddo impression this half-term! Competition runs from Thursday 12 to Tuesday 17 February 2026. Win a Buddo Bundle! For your chance to win our BuddoBundle, snap a #BestBuddoSelfie of your best Buddo expression! To take part: 1. Take a selfie during your visit to Stromness Museum using the selfie props available in our front porch. 2. Post the selfie to Instagram, Facebook orBlueSky tagging @StromnessMuseum and using #BestBuddoSelfie 3.You'll be in the randomly generated draw to win our brilliant Buddo Bundle. You must post your #BestBuddoSelfie selfie by 8pm on Tuesday 17 February 2026. The winner will be drawn shortly after and notified via DM.* Good Luck! *If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 7 days of notification, we reserve the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner. The winner agrees to the use of their name and image in any publicity material, as well as their entry. Entry to Stromness Museum is free for all during Feb. OpenMon-Sat 11.00am-3.30pm (closed Sun). 52Albert St, Stromness,Orkney,KW16 3DH Tel: 01856 850025 / Email: custodian@stromnessmuseum.org.uk www.stromnessmuseum.org.uk

We're ready for your #BestBuddoSelfie! For a chance to win our Buddo Bundle, snap your best Buddo impression! 😲
1️⃣ Take a selfie during your visit to the Museum.
2️⃣ Post it to Insta/FB/BlueSky tagging
@stromnessmuseum.bsky.social & using #BestBuddoSelfie
3️⃣ You'll be included in the prize draw.

Poster that reads: HERBARIA: A PRESSING ISSUE? Talk by Dr. Jane Pottas. The past, present and future of seaweed herbaria. Thursday 12 February. 7.30pm (Doors open 7pm). FREE - But booking essential. Stromness Museum, 52 Alfred Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DH. / Tel 01856 850025 / www.stromnessmuseum.org.uk/whatson

Today is International Day of Women and Girls in Science, which offers a timely reminder to book your free tickets to intertidal ecologist Dr Pottas' talk on the history of herbaria tomorow evening if you haven't already!
ℹ️&🎟️: shorturl.at/8wxGa
#February11 #womeninscience

Poster: STROMNESS MUSEUM HALF-TERM HOLIDAY COMPETITION We’d like to see your best Buddo impression this half-term! Take part for a chance to win our brilliant Buddo Bundle from Thursday 12 until Tuesday 17 February 2026. For your chance to win our Buddo Bundle, snap a #BestBuddoSelfie of your best Buddo expression! To take part: 1. Take a selfie during your visit to Stromness Museum using the selfie props available in our front porch. 2. Post the selfie to Instagram, Facebook or BlueSky tagging @StromnessMuseum and using #BestBuddoSelfie 3. You'll be in the randomly generated draw to win our brilliant Buddo Bundle. You must post your #BestBuddoSelfie selfie by 8pm on Tuesday 17th February 2026. The winner will be drawn shortly after and notified via DM.* Good Luck! *If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 7 days of notification, we reserve the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner. The winner agrees to the use of their name and image in any publicity material, as well as their entry. Remember, entry to Stromness Museum is free for all during February 2026. We’re open Monday-Saturday 11.00am-3.30pm (closed Sunday). Find us at: 52 Albert St, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DH

For a chance to win a Buddo Bundle, snap a #BestBuddoSelfie of your best Buddo impression this Feb half-term! 😲
1️⃣Take a selfie during your visit to Stromness Museum.
2️⃣Post it to Insta, FB or BlueSky tagging @stromnessmuseum.bsky.social & using #BestBuddoSelfie
3️⃣You'll be included in the prize draw.

‘Archaeology of Scotland’s Natural Larder’ article series concludes with seaweed The third and final article in the Archaeology of Scotland's Natural Larder series is now available on the Dig It! website.

The third and final article in the Archaeology of Scotland's Natural Larder series is now available on the Dig It! website.

We'd like to reassure followers that no-one was harmed in the making of Free February.

Black & white photo of a family driving a Ford Zephyr car beside the Watchstone, Stenness, c. 1950s. Hourston Photographic Collection, © Stromness Museum.

Set your SatNav for Stromness Museum during Free February, while there's free entry for all visitors throughout the month! Those becoming Stromness Museum ‘Friends’ this month will also enter a prize draw for a £25 gift voucher! We're open Mon-Sat at 11am-3.30pm.🚗

Poster that reads: HERBARIA: A PRESSING ISSUE? Talk by Dr. Jane Pottas. The past, present and future of seaweed herbaria. Thursday 12 February. 7.30pm (Doors open 7pm). FREE - But booking essential. Stromness Museum, 52 Alfred Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DH. / Tel 01856 850025 / www.stromnessmuseum.org.uk/whatson

Intertidal Ecologist Dr Jane Pottas will give a talk on the history of herbaria, with specific emphasis on seaweed herbaria (algaria), at Stromness Museum, Thur 12 Feb, 7:30pm (doors open 7pm). The talk is free but booking is essential. For details and tickets see: stromnessmuseum.org.uk/whatson 🌊🪸