Collection
NI Prison Service Collection: Unboxed
Go behind-the-scenes at the Ulster Museum and see how we have been working through the NI Prison Service Collection.
ni prison service collection
In 2018, the Ulster Museum received a donation from the Northern Ireland Prison Service.
Curator of Modern History, Rebecca Laverty, takes us through some items found in the NI Prison Service Collection.
The Collection
History of The Collection
In 2018, the Ulster Museum received a donation from the Northern Ireland Prison Service, comprising of homemade tools and weapons, uniforms, prison artwork, maps and photographs, notices, contraband, objects modified to conceal contraband and body armour. The material relates predominantly, but not exclusively, to HMP Maze.
A documentation project began to catalogue, assess and digitise each item in this large and historically significant collection.
The items in the collection are mostly from Maze/Long Kesh, but during the course of the documentation project items were found from other prisons. This includes HMP Magilligan, HMP Armagh, HMP Belfast, Derry/Londonderry Gaol, HMS Maidstone and HMS Al-Rawdah.
We invite community representatives and stakeholders to view the collection and will be continuing to research the items in collaboration with these partners.
If you would like to get in touch with us about any of the items you see in the video or on our collections database, please contact [email protected]
Troubles and Beyond is a strategically important area for the Ulster Museum. It positions the museum as a shared and trusted space that encourages discovery and dialogue about the legacy of our past. This work programme will seek to amplify the Ulster Museum's work in this area.
