Watch the incredible discovery of this colossal statue, submerged under the sea of thousands of years.
Come face to face with the ancient Egyptian god Hapy for yourself in our #SunkenCities‬ exhibition http://ow.ly/Ze063020YRr

Colossal statue of Hapy. Thonis-Heracleion, Egypt. About 380-250 BC. Maritime Museum, Alexandria. © Franck Goddio/Hilti Foundation.

The worship of the sacred bull Apis was the most important animal cult in ancient Egypt. Priests carefully selected a bull which was seen as a representative of the creator god Ptah on earth. The Apis bull was treated like a pharaoh, crowned in Memphis and given his own harem of cows! When he died, his body was mummified. This magnificent bull is over two metres long. It was dedicated by the Roman emperor Hadrian (r. AD 117–138) for the Temple of Serapis in Alexandria http://ow.ly/C5NE301TUQM

Learn more about animal cults in ancient Egypt in our #SunkenCities‬ exhibition http://ow.ly/VgBw301TXus

Apis bull, AD 117–138. Alexandria. Greco-Roman Museum, Alexandria. Photo: Christoph Gerigk. © Franck Goddio/Hilti Foundation.

We are delighted to announce our special autumn exhibition on #SouthAfricanArt‬ , exploring a 3 million-year history through archaeological, historic and contemporary artworks.

In this exhibition a diverse range of art from across the ages tells a story that stretches back to the Early Stone Age. From rock art made by the country’s earliest peoples to works by South African artists at the forefront of contemporary art, the exhibition features beautiful and important works, which illustrate South Africa’s rich history.
Tickets are on sale for ‘South Africa: 3 million years of art’ – book now! http://ow.ly/mUEc301QHW4

Sponsored by Betsy and Jack Ryan
Logistics partner IAG Cargo

#ThrowbackThursday‬ to 1875! These photographs by Frederick York capture the grandeur of the Museum’s galleries and libraries

Porcelain making began 400 years ago in Japan. It is said to have started in 1616 in Arita, a town on the southern island of Kyushu near Nagasaki. One of the most famous of Japanese porcelain styles is Kakiemon.

Learn more about #Kakiemon‬ porcelain in our free display, supported by The Asahi Shimbun http://ow.ly/8Djp301KrUH

Under the Norman kings of Sicily, the island became a prosperous and influential Mediterranean superpower. The coexistence of western, Islamic and Byzantine cultures on Sicily created a multilingual state. In Palermo, the messages on public monuments were frequently in two or three languages. This funerary inscription was set up by Grisandus, a Christian priest, for his mother Anna in AD 1149. Her eulogy is written in Judaeo-Arabic (Arabic written in Hebrew script) on top, Latin on the left, Greek on the right, and Arabic below.

Learn more about this cultural centre of the ancient and medieval world in our #SicilyExhibition‬ http://ow.ly/TCM8301vQL9

A tombstone in four languages. Sicily, AD 1149. Soprintendenza Beni Culturali e Ambientali di Palermo. © Regione Siciliana.

Many of the greatest stories and legends from Homer’s Odyssey were based around Sicily. From the mythical sea monsters of Scylla and Charybdis to the cyclops Polyphemus, discover how Sicily’s fertile landscape and wild coastline inspired many of these stories.

Learn more about the ancient Greeks who settled on this remarkable island in our #SicilyExhibition‬, until 14 August http://ow.ly/9wcc301Z7kL

Sir Isaac Newton’s revolutionary work Principia was published #onthisday‬ in 1687. This groundbreaking work summarised Newton’s principles of universal gravitation and his famous laws of motion. This portrait of Newton from 1726 is the title page from the 3rd edition of this work http://ow.ly/yMMhN

Meet our new Director, Dr Hartwig Fischer, as he reflects on his first months at the Museum and introduces some of his personal highlights. From piecing together fragments of an ancient tablet to the wonder of walking into the Great Court, follow Hartwig’s journey and find out how he sees the role of the British Museum in the world today.

This print celebrates the new Tower Bridge. The iconic London landmark opened #onthisday‬ in 1894! http://ow.ly/vOEP301FeH5

#Wimbledon starts today! Who would like to see a return to this look from 1769? http://ow.ly/Kct5301BCtX

It’s #WorldGiraffeDay‬! These two remarkable #AfricanRockArt‬ engravings depict life-size giraffes. They are thought to date from between 6,000 and 8,000 years ago – a period when environmental conditions in the Sahara were able to sustain large mammals such as giraffes. The two giraffes, thought to be one large male in front of a smaller female, were engraved on the weathered surface of a sandstone outcrop. The engravings cannot be seen from ground level and are only visible by climbing onto the boulder http://ow.ly/ZyBs301twY1

Our #AfricanRockArt image project is cataloguing and digitally preserving 25,000 images of rock art. Find out more http://ow.ly/JCZfm