There are over 12 million objects in Scotland’s National Collection, ranging across natural sciences, Scottish history and archaeology, art, design, science, technology, and ancient and living cultures from around the world.
How did such a diverse range of objects come together? The collection has grown and developed in a variety of ways over the past 200 years. Objects have been collected as works of art, records of archaeology, scientific discoveries, curios and personal mementoes, representations of other cultures, trophies looted during military campaigns and specimens of natural resources for scientific study.
Some objects were accepted as gifts from private collectors, individuals and families or came from universities or antiquarian societies whose collections were acquired by National Museums Scotland. Others were sought out and purchased with a view to telling
