RDA Trip to the British Museum, Silk Roads Exhibition
Last week, a few of the RDA team took a trip across the road from our practice to the British Museum to visit the Silk Road exhibition. On a recent trip to The Kingdom of Saudia Arabia last November, members of the RDA team were able to visit areas of the of the worlds’ oldest trade routes.
The exhibition revealed the journeys of people, objects and ideas that shaped culture and histories. Rather than a singular route from East to West, the Silk Roads were made up of overlapping and interlinked networks of communities across Asia, Africa and Europe, stretching from Scandinavia to Madagascar. From AD 500 to 1000, witnessed significant advancements in connectivity and universal religions that linked continent. The exhibition offered us the chance to see objects from the length and breadth of the silk roads. From Chinese ceramics found in the Middle East, to Indian garments found at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk.
During our visit, we were also able to view the design concepts from the five shortlisted architecture teams for the overhaul of the museum’s gallery spaces in the Round Reading Room.