Collection: Shetland Museum and Archive

Fisherman's hat

Shetlanders wore knitted hats when off fishing, and the the multicoloured patterns contrasted with the brown oilskins and boots they wore. Visitors to…

Prehistoric cup

Whales are common in the North Atlantic, and since ancient times people have used their meat and oil. In regions with no trees, bones were fashioned…

Byre lantern

Tradional Shetland farmsteads had outbuildings connected to the house, so people could go through to the byre to tend to the cattle, even in the…

Fishing sinker

Traditional fishing gear had two main parts – a baited hook to catch the fish, and a weight to sink the line into the sea. This is a specialised…

Emigrants doll

Around 1900 hundreds of Shetlanders left their native home. It was a time of hardship but also opportunity. People settled elsewhere in Britain, or…

Corncrake bird

Corncrake birds lived in Shetland for thousands of years, nesting in cornfields. However, they have nearly disappered from the islands for over thirty…

Box for a voyage

When off on a boat trip, people used this kind of box, known in Shetland as a bøst, to carry food or fishing flies. These boxes were made around…

A cure for jaundice: Bone Bowl

Jaundice is a symptom, rather than a disease. Shetlanders used folk-remedies to try to cure the condition. One way was to drink water from a stream…

Wireless battery

Communication sped up throughout the twentieth century, but news wasn’t that new by the time it got to Shetland by sea. The wireless meant islanders…