Petrie Project Archivist
Ref Number B25-00198 Professional Expertise Libraries, museums, theatres and open science Department Vice-Provost (Faculties) (B25) Location London Working Pattern Full time Salary £35,930-£41,255 Contract Type Fixed-term Working Type On site Available for Secondment No Closing Date 16-Apr-2025
About Us
UCL is London’s global university. LCCOS – Library, Culture, Collections and Open Science – provides outstanding staff, services and resources to support the world-class research, education and enterprise that is undertaken in UCL, and connects the world with UCL through innovative programming and engagement activities. LCCOS is acknowledged as an international leader in Open Science and Scholarship. The LCCOS family comprises 4 museums and allied object collections, 14 libraries, the UCL Student Centre, the Bloomsbury Theatre, Special Collections facilities, multiple additional learning spaces, and a substantial off-site storage facility. We also provide comprehensive services to healthcare staff through our partnerships with 6 NHS Trusts. LCCOS holds the UK Customer Service Excellence (CSE) Award, The National Archives (TNA) Archives Service Accreditation, and Arts Council England Museum Accreditation. The combined staff in UCL LCCOS totals around 440. LCCOS is part of the Office of the UCL Vice-Provost (Faculties).
The Petrie Museum houses around 80,600 objects, making it one of the largest and most important collections of Egyptian and Sudanese archaeology in the world. The collections represent all facets of life along the Nile Valley: pharaohs and ordinary people, children, craftspeople, animals, and plant life, across millennia. Petrie’s excavations were funded by museums and individual benefactors internationally, the records for which are reflected within the Museum’s archives. As a result, the archive represent an essential key that unlocks the information of many hundreds of thousands of objects worldwide.
A large proportion of the Museum’s archives relate to the work of Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie and includes his diaries, field notebooks, tomb cards, drawings, maps, photographs, negatives, correspondence and plates and drawings (originals and proofs) for his excavation publications. There are other areas of importance, such as the papers of Hilda Petrie, records relating to the Museum itself, documents about other object distributions (primarily the Welcome distribution of the mid 20th Century) and named personal collections, including Margaret (Peggy) Drower, Margaret Murray and Georgiana Aitken. Also within the archive are documents, records and photographs of Egyptian and Sudanese workforces, which are critical for modern-day understanding of the role, expertise and significance of Egyptian and Sudanese archaeologists.
The archive is mainly paper-based, but also includes photographs, negatives, glass plates, CDs, DVDs, analogue tapes, slides, microfiche, textiles and drawings. A large collection of ephemera was located during a 2021 (3D) collections repacking and move and includes original packing labels and handwritten documents.
UCL Special Collections collects, preserves and provides access to archives, records and rare books to support the research and teaching of UCL and to reflect the history of the organisation. The department aims to engage UCL staff and students and external audiences through academic teaching sessions, exhibitions, special events, community and school links and social media.
This role has been partly funded by the Friends of the Petrie Museum (UK registered charity number 1192201).
About The Role
This role entails the following duties:
Cataloguing
• Create a structure for the Petrie Museum Archive based on provenance wherever possible.
• Create a detailed catalogue according to international cataloguing standards, namely ISAD(G), incorporating existing lists and references where they exist.
• Use of specialist software (Axiell CALM) for all aspects of collection management.
• Undertake copyright and data protection checking across the collections.
• Undertake documentation and ownership checks for named archive collections.
• Repack archives in conservation-grade boxes and folders where required.
• Follow and contribute to internal cataloguing terminology and content warnings for archive collections.
Planning
• Assess the archive for future digitisation projects.
• Assess AV components of the archive for digital transfer
• Develop a cataloguing plan for the object wrapping and container collection with conservation colleagues.
• Plan for future updates of the catalogue and enquiry management.
• Assist with progress reports and attend relevant meetings, providing timely updates to Friends of the Petrie Museum and the project advisory committee.
Access and Engagement
• Creating a set of guidelines and documentation for reader access, based on those used by UCL Special Collections.
• Support the development of public engagement projects based on the archive.
• Share highlights from the project digitally and at relevant conferences and events.
General
• Maintain an awareness and observation of Health and Safety Regulations
• Maintain awareness, and actively support the delivery, of UCL's Sustainability Strategy, policies and objectives.
• Follow and actively promote the UCL Ways of Working.
• Carry out any other duties within the scope, spirit and purpose of the job as requested by the line manager.
• This job description may be reviewed and be subject to amendment in consultation with the post holder.
This is a fixed-term role for one year in the first instance.
Manual handling is required to carry out this role. Training will be provided.
This is an on-campus role. It is not suitable for regular remote working.
This appointment is subject to UCL Terms and Conditions of Service for Research and Professional Services Staff. Please visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/human-resources/conditions-service-research-teaching-and-professional-services-staff for more information.
This role does not meet the eligibility requirements for a Skilled Worker Visa certificate of sponsorship under UK Visas and Immigration legislation. Therefore, UCL will not be able to sponsor individuals who require right to work in the UK to carry out this role.
About You
We are looking for candidates who in particular have the following experience and skills:
• Experience of cataloguing large and complex collections to a high standard, with a good understanding of the legislation underlying the management of archives (particularly copyright and data protection). Good organisational skills, and the ability to meet deadlines, are essential.
Further details
The advert will close on the published date at 23:59 GMT. Interviews will be held at DMS Watson building (the Science Library). A job description and person specification can be accessed from the link at the bottom of this page.
To Apply, Please Provide
• An up-to-date CV, including as a minimum detail of your current employment, salary and notice period, details of any former employment and your education history.
• A supporting statement, showing how your skills and experience meet each of the criteria marked ‘Application’ in the Person Specification found within the Job Description for this post. Your statement should be provided using the free text box under ‘Questionnaire’.
If you have any queries about the role or have any queries about the application process, please contact lccos-jobs@ucl.ac.uk, quoting the job title and reference number.
Further information about UCL LCCOS can be found on our website https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lccos/
The UCL Ways of Working supports colleagues to be successful and happy at UCL through sharing expectations around how we work – please visit www.ucl.ac.uk/ways-of-working to find out more.
What we offer
As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits some of which are below:
• 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days)
• Additional 5 days’ annual leave purchase scheme
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan
• Immigration loan
• Relocation scheme for certain posts
• On-Site nursery
• On-site gym
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service
• Discounted medical insurance
Visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/rewards-and-benefits to find out more.
As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer great benefits. Please visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/rewards-and-benefits to find out more.
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world’s talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong.
We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL’s workforce.
These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.
Our department is working towards an Athena SWAN award. We are committed to advancing gender equality within our department.
You can read more about our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/equality-diversity-inclusion/
Available documents
Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.
• download: Grade 6 Cataloguing Archivist Petrie Archive.pdf
Ref Number B25-00198 Professional Expertise Libraries, museums, theatres and open science Department Vice-Provost (Faculties) (B25) Location London Working Pattern Full time Salary £35,930-£41,255 Contract Type Fixed-term Working Type On site Available for Secondment No Closing Date 16-Apr-2025
About Us
UCL is London’s global university. LCCOS – Library, Culture, Collections and Open Science – provides outstanding staff, services and resources to support the world-class research, education and enterprise that is undertaken in UCL, and connects the world with UCL through innovative programming and engagement activities. LCCOS is acknowledged as an international leader in Open Science and Scholarship. The LCCOS family comprises 4 museums and allied object collections, 14 libraries, the UCL Student Centre, the Bloomsbury Theatre, Special Collections facilities, multiple additional learning spaces, and a substantial off-site storage facility. We also provide comprehensive services to healthcare staff through our partnerships with 6 NHS Trusts. LCCOS holds the UK Customer Service Excellence (CSE) Award, The National Archives (TNA) Archives Service Accreditation, and Arts Council England Museum Accreditation. The combined staff in UCL LCCOS totals around 440. LCCOS is part of the Office of the UCL Vice-Provost (Faculties).
The Petrie Museum houses around 80,600 objects, making it one of the largest and most important collections of Egyptian and Sudanese archaeology in the world. The collections represent all facets of life along the Nile Valley: pharaohs and ordinary people, children, craftspeople, animals, and plant life, across millennia. Petrie’s excavations were funded by museums and individual benefactors internationally, the records for which are reflected within the Museum’s archives. As a result, the archive represent an essential key that unlocks the information of many hundreds of thousands of objects worldwide.
A large proportion of the Museum’s archives relate to the work of Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie and includes his diaries, field notebooks, tomb cards, drawings, maps, photographs, negatives, correspondence and plates and drawings (originals and proofs) for his excavation publications. There are other areas of importance, such as the papers of Hilda Petrie, records relating to the Museum itself, documents about other object distributions (primarily the Welcome distribution of the mid 20th Century) and named personal collections, including Margaret (Peggy) Drower, Margaret Murray and Georgiana Aitken. Also within the archive are documents, records and photographs of Egyptian and Sudanese workforces, which are critical for modern-day understanding of the role, expertise and significance of Egyptian and Sudanese archaeologists.
The archive is mainly paper-based, but also includes photographs, negatives, glass plates, CDs, DVDs, analogue tapes, slides, microfiche, textiles and drawings. A large collection of ephemera was located during a 2021 (3D) collections repacking and move and includes original packing labels and handwritten documents.
UCL Special Collections collects, preserves and provides access to archives, records and rare books to support the research and teaching of UCL and to reflect the history of the organisation. The department aims to engage UCL staff and students and external audiences through academic teaching sessions, exhibitions, special events, community and school links and social media.
This role has been partly funded by the Friends of the Petrie Museum (UK registered charity number 1192201).
About The Role
This role entails the following duties:
Cataloguing
• Create a structure for the Petrie Museum Archive based on provenance wherever possible.
• Create a detailed catalogue according to international cataloguing standards, namely ISAD(G), incorporating existing lists and references where they exist.
• Use of specialist software (Axiell CALM) for all aspects of collection management.
• Undertake copyright and data protection checking across the collections.
• Undertake documentation and ownership checks for named archive collections.
• Repack archives in conservation-grade boxes and folders where required.
• Follow and contribute to internal cataloguing terminology and content warnings for archive collections.
Planning
• Assess the archive for future digitisation projects.
• Assess AV components of the archive for digital transfer
• Develop a cataloguing plan for the object wrapping and container collection with conservation colleagues.
• Plan for future updates of the catalogue and enquiry management.
• Assist with progress reports and attend relevant meetings, providing timely updates to Friends of the Petrie Museum and the project advisory committee.
Access and Engagement
• Creating a set of guidelines and documentation for reader access, based on those used by UCL Special Collections.
• Support the development of public engagement projects based on the archive.
• Share highlights from the project digitally and at relevant conferences and events.
General
• Maintain an awareness and observation of Health and Safety Regulations
• Maintain awareness, and actively support the delivery, of UCL's Sustainability Strategy, policies and objectives.
• Follow and actively promote the UCL Ways of Working.
• Carry out any other duties within the scope, spirit and purpose of the job as requested by the line manager.
• This job description may be reviewed and be subject to amendment in consultation with the post holder.
This is a fixed-term role for one year in the first instance.
Manual handling is required to carry out this role. Training will be provided.
This is an on-campus role. It is not suitable for regular remote working.
This appointment is subject to UCL Terms and Conditions of Service for Research and Professional Services Staff. Please visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/human-resources/conditions-service-research-teaching-and-professional-services-staff for more information.
This role does not meet the eligibility requirements for a Skilled Worker Visa certificate of sponsorship under UK Visas and Immigration legislation. Therefore, UCL will not be able to sponsor individuals who require right to work in the UK to carry out this role.
About You
We are looking for candidates who in particular have the following experience and skills:
• Experience of cataloguing large and complex collections to a high standard, with a good understanding of the legislation underlying the management of archives (particularly copyright and data protection). Good organisational skills, and the ability to meet deadlines, are essential.
Further details
The advert will close on the published date at 23:59 GMT. Interviews will be held at DMS Watson building (the Science Library). A job description and person specification can be accessed from the link at the bottom of this page.
To Apply, Please Provide
• An up-to-date CV, including as a minimum detail of your current employment, salary and notice period, details of any former employment and your education history.
• A supporting statement, showing how your skills and experience meet each of the criteria marked ‘Application’ in the Person Specification found within the Job Description for this post. Your statement should be provided using the free text box under ‘Questionnaire’.
If you have any queries about the role or have any queries about the application process, please contact lccos-jobs@ucl.ac.uk, quoting the job title and reference number.
Further information about UCL LCCOS can be found on our website https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lccos/
The UCL Ways of Working supports colleagues to be successful and happy at UCL through sharing expectations around how we work – please visit www.ucl.ac.uk/ways-of-working to find out more.
What we offer
As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits some of which are below:
• 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave 8 bank holiday and 6 closure days)
• Additional 5 days’ annual leave purchase scheme
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan
• Immigration loan
• Relocation scheme for certain posts
• On-Site nursery
• On-site gym
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service
• Discounted medical insurance
Visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/rewards-and-benefits to find out more.
As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer great benefits. Please visit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/rewards-and-benefits to find out more.
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world’s talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong.
We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL’s workforce.
These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.
Our department is working towards an Athena SWAN award. We are committed to advancing gender equality within our department.
You can read more about our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/equality-diversity-inclusion/
Available documents
Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.
• download: Grade 6 Cataloguing Archivist Petrie Archive.pdf
