Activity Grant Report: "Commemorating Coal Mining Worldwide" publication

In 2021 ICDAD provided an activity grant to Dr. Margaret Faull to support research and fees for her publication Commemorating Coal Mining Worldwide: international museums, heritage centres, and sites related to coal mining.

Click through to read Dr. Faull's report on the use of the activity grant and view images from her publication. And congratulations to Dr. Faull on this accomplishment! 

Published in May 2022 by BAR Publishing, Commemorating Coal Mining Worldwide contains descriptions of 432 coal-mining museums, heritage centres, archives and memorials, and preserved colliery sites in 48 countries in Africa, America, Asia, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand. This is not a history of coal mining, but rather a catalogue of how museums around the world have portrayed the history of coal mining, colliers, and mining communities. This includes subjects such as the development of new technology, features commonly found on the surfaces of mines, disasters, transport, women and children working underground, working conditions, strikes and trade unions, and slavery and forced labour, especially in wartime and by certain countries in particular. There is a detailed introduction, including discussion of the architecture of buildings used for museums and collections including art and applied and decorative art. 

Of the 432 sites included in the book, 25 entries include details of exhibits relevant to the decorative arts and design, with photographs illustrating these aspects. The itinerary involved approaching all museums concerned, obtaining up-to-date images and copyright approval to use these in the publication. The goal was achieved with a publication of 500 pages and 452 illustrations. 

Exterior of winding-engine house with art-nouveau entrance (© LWL-Industriemuseum)

Interior of winding-engine house with stained-glass window and 1902 electrical reciprocating compressor (© LWL-Industriemuseum).

Close-up of pay-office building showing red-brick historicism style, with ornate gables and facades with white rendering (© LWL-Industriemuseum).

Interior of administration building showing ornate tiling and ironwork (© LWL-Industriemuseum).

Display of stained-glass window from power station (© Ghislaine Delestrée).