Tour: Two Mummified People, Thomas Bateman & Weston Park Museum

Thomas Bateman is well known in the Derbyshire and South Yorkshire as a local barrow digger, the “Barrow Knight”. However, less is known about his interest in human remains from other countries, including Egypt.

The two mummified people that that the city has had amongst its museum collection for over 100 years were originally part of Thomas Bateman’s extensive collection. The collection was initially lent, and then acquired by, what was then known as Sheffield City Museum (now Weston Park Museum) at the end of the 19th century.

How did a local man, who never stepped foot in Egypt, acquire these specific human remains and why did he seek to obtain them for his collection?

Join us for this special museum tour to explore the connection between the two mummified people and a figure who, by the time he died in the middle of the 19th century, was recognised nationally as an influential figure in the field of archaeology.

The tour was designed by True Talk Africa CIC, a local Sheffield-based organisation which seeks to provide holistic narratives about Africa and the Black British presence in England and Wales ().

Part of a programme of displays, events and activities celebrating 150 years of Weston Park Museum in 2025. 

Image credit: Andy Brown

Host or Publisher Museums Sheffield