How a 19th-century sharing system built a modern museum collection

History · Published 29 September 2026 · Updated 25 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: For 140 years, the Egypt Exploration Society has directed excavations across Egypt. Through a practice known as 'partage,' a percentage of unearthed artefacts were distributed to subscribers, creating a global web of history that eventually flowed into the hands of a single university museum.

The Egypt Exploration Society (EES) has led Egyptological work in the UK for 140 years, conducting excavations at significant sites such as Abydos, Amarna, Bubastis, and Naukratis. Historically, the society operated under the 'partage' system, a method where a portion of excavated artefacts was distributed to institutions that provided financial support or subscribed to the society. This mechanism ensured that treasures from sites like Armant and Deir el-Bahari were not lost to a single location but spread across various global collections.

One notable figure in this distribution was Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome (1853–19​36), the founder of the Wellcome Historical Medicine Museum. During the 1920s and 1930s, many objects from the Amarna and Armant excavations entered his collection. Following 1971, Wellcome’s Egyptian collection was dispersed, with many pieces arriving at Swansea University's Egypt Centre. This included unpublished objects from 1930s excavations at Armant and hundreds of items gifted by the British Museum in 1978, which originated from EES sites like Nebesheh and Sesebi.

Today, the Egypt Centre houses over 1,000 objects from EES excavations within its total collection of approximately 6,000 items. Under the curation of Dr. Ken Griffin, the museum utilizes modern technology, such as X-ray micro CT scanning, to examine mummified animals. While the museum only displays about one-third of its holdings, it continues to expand its reach through digital initiatives, including online courses that have attracted participants from over 50 countries across six continents.

General information, not professional advice. Spotted an error? Flag the card or see corrections and complaints.

Intellect Plus is a visual educational discovery platform for exploring fascinating facts and ideas. Brain Food, Not Brain Rot. What is Intellect Plus?

Related

• Saving ancient Sumerian history from piles of dirt
• Could a single papyrus fragment contain the lost autobiography of Emperor Hadrian?
• The Nubian kingdom that once conquered Egypt and ruled it for a century
• Why are the massive stone sarcophagi inside Egypt's pyramids often plain and unfinished?
• The birth of divine kingship: how Egypt became a unified state
• The Great Breach in Menkaure's Pyramid was likely an entrance search, not an act of destruction
• Did a Persian army really conquer Egypt by weaponizing cats and sacred imagery?
• When the Pharaoh's monopoly on the afterlife finally broke
• Why Ancient Egyptians Believed Preserving the Physical Body Was Essential for Eternal Life
• Was the massive scar on Menkaure's pyramid actually a historical hoax?
• How the Old Kingdom transformed Egypt into a unified, monumental superpower
• Why the Great Pyramid of Giza remains the ultimate ancient architectural mystery

More in Ancient egypt · More in History · Latest · A–Z · All topics