Ancient Egypt
Over two thousand five hundred years ago, Takabuti was a fine lady, the mistress of an important house near Thebes in Egypt. Her mummy has been one of the museum’s most popular exhibits since fi rst revealed to the public in 1835.Takabuti is located in 'Life & Death in Ancient Egypt' ga...

Belleek
  The Belleek factory was founded in 1857, in an area rich in the raw materials necessary to make porcelain as well as earthenware and stoneware.It originally traded as McBirney & Co and produced a wide range of domestic earthenware. Once technical problems had been overcome the factory ...

Champion Patrick of Ifold
Patrick of Ifold was born on the 17 March 1923, St Patrick's Day and died on 8 May 1931, aged eight years old. He was owned by Mrs Beynon of Broadoak, Sutton-at-Hone, Kent.Patrick was a very famous champion wolfhound during his lifetime. He won his first championship at 14 months old, at the Rich...

Diamond brooch
This brooch can be viewed in the George and Angela Moore Gallery of Applied Art. Jewellery fulfils a number of functions including the obvious one of personal adornment. It can celebrate an event such as an engagement, a wedding, or an anniversary (image, Diamond brooch, French, 18th century, cli...

Iron Age Metalwork
Iron Age objects in the collections include brooches, horse-bits, spearheads, swords and scabbards. Some of the finest objects are: a unique decorated bronze spearhead from Moy, County Tyrone; a wooden tankard with decorated bronze fittings from Carrickfergus, County Antrim; and, several decorate...

Lammergeier
This magnificent specimen, mounted attacking a wildcat, is on display in Window on Our World (Nature Zone).It was prepared by the world famous Belfast firm of taxidermists, James Sheals, in the early 1900s and won a gold medal at an exhibition of taxidermy in Cairo, Egypt, in 1935. Image: La...

Morpho Butterflies
There are around 80 species of the genus Morpho. They are found only in the Neotropical Region (South America including Mexico and Central America).The blue is not a pigment colour (pigments are materials that change the colour of light by selective absorption-dyes are an example). Instead Morpho...

Peter the Polar bear
Peter the Polar Bear is one of the Ulster Museum's most popular exhibits and is on display in the Window on Our World (Nature Zone).  When he died in August 1972 he was presented to the Ulster Museum by Belfast Zoo.He was carefully prepared and mounted for display by the museum’s ...

Salamander
Gold and Ruby Salamander PendantThis little salamander, or ‘winged lizard’, of gold inset with rubies is only one piece from the sumptuous collection of 16th century jewellery recovered from the Spanish Armada galleas, Girona.This is located in the 'Armada' gallery, number 11 on the U...

Seymchan Pallasite Slice
Meteorites are rare and wondrous things, fragments of worlds other than our own.The weight of gold that has been mined on Earth far exceeds the total weight of all meteorites in the world’s collections. Among the rarest of meteorites are pallasites, in which translucent yellow or green crys...