A Greek pot in black and terracotta with scenes of figures seated and standing in a garden, and a horse-drawn chariot, graphic designs, a fluted neck and handles

Lending across the world

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How to borrow British Museum objects

The British Museum lends objects to cultural organisations around the globe, making the collection accessible to millions of people who would otherwise not have the opportunity to engage with these objects.

These loans enable us to tell new stories, connect to communities and inspire audiences internationally. Behind many of these loans are deep, long-standing partnerships and collaborations which advance our understanding of the past and the world around us.

Asante regalia displayed in Ghana

Building on five decades of collaboration with the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the British Museum has lent items of gold and silver regalia associated with the Asante royal court. These are of cultural, historical and spiritual significance to the Asante people, and will form part of a three-year exhibition to mark the Silver Jubilee of His Royal Majesty, the Asantehene, Osei Tutu II, as well as commemorating the 150th anniversary of the 1873–4 Anglo-Asante war.

Ancient objects travel to India

The loan of six sculptures to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) in Mumbia, from December 2023 to October 2024, marked the beginning of a renewed partnership with CSMVS which will provide an unprecedented opportunity for Indian audiences to engage with narratives that link antiquity to the present, and India to the world beyond. This exhibition, which will be followed by a three-year loan in late 2025 of around 80 objects to a new Ancient World Gallery, was co-curated between the partners in a new model of international collaboration. This work is generously sponsored by the Getty Foundation.

A unique Māori sail tours New Zealand

The loan of the last known Māori sail, Te Rā, to two venues in New Zealand marked a historic moment. Revealing complex weaving technologies, Te Rā is a symbol of Māori skill, innovation and adaptation, and the importance of voyaging in Māori culture. The loan is the result of long running collaboration between Māori researchers and the British Museum which has also seen Māori weavers create the first new sails in hundreds of years. Te Rā went to the Christchurch Art Gallery from July to October 2023, and then on to the Auckland Museum from November 2023 to May 2024.

The Meidias hydria in Athens

This painted water vase dating from 420 BC is a masterpiece by the artist known as Meidias. Bought in Italy in the 1760s by William Hamilton, the British envoy to Naples, it was acquired by the British Museum in 1772. This is the first time in 250 years that it has left London.

The first leg of the hydria's travels was at the Akropolis Museum in Athens from December 2023 to April 2024, where an exhibition Meanings: personifications and allegories from antiquity to today highlighted the way ancient Greek artists were the first to give tangible shape to abstract concepts such as love and health. The hydria will then also be included in another exhibition at the Musée du Louvre in Paris.

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