Research
Work is currently under way to provide digital access to the complete STAM collection through the Province of East Flanders’ MovE project. A part of STAM’s collection appears online on this website. Alternatively, you can view the collection on the website of the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage, www.kikirpa.be.
In the meantime, each specific sub-collection in turn, such as the medals and the stained-glass windows, is being researched, photographed and inventorized. There are of course also unusual items which demand research, such as the wolf foot and the 'Panoramic view of Ghent'.
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Wolf foot
The recent rediscovery of a mummified animal foot triggered a search with an uncertain outcome. Did the foot have anything to do with Ghent, and if so where did it come from? Did it say something about its former animal owner?In 2013 a historical search, a biological examination and a consultation with the DNA lab led archaeozoologist Anton Ervynck to a number of fascinating findings, which he presented in a lecture and a scientific article.
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Panoramic view of Ghent
The 'Panoramic view of Ghent 1534' is one of the highlights of STAM’s collection. It occupies a central place on the museum circuit. In 2011 a detailed study of the original source material cast doubt on the age of the work. STAM had the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage (KIK-IRPA) carry out a further scientific analysis of the materials used, along with comparative research. They proved the authenticity of the painting.
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Stained-glass windows
STAM’s collection includes some 300 small stained-glass windows of the highest quality. The majority date from the sixteenth century when the stained-glass industry was at its peak. Several were incorporated into windows of buildings, others are loose in the storeroom. An inventory of the sub-collection of stained-glass windows was drawn up with a member of staff from the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage (KIK-IRPA). The Royal Institute has made digital reproductions of all the stained-glass windows.
In November 2011 the inventory of the stained-glass windows was published in the book Silver-Stained Roundels and Unipartite Panels before the French Revolution. Flanders, Vol. 2: The Provinces of East and West Flanders by C.J. Berserik and J.M.A. Caen, Corpus Vitrearum, Turnhout, Brepols.
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Coins and medals
STAM’s impressive collection of Ghent-related coins and medals is currently the subject of an in-depth study. A digitized inventory of STAM’s numismatics, which can be consulted on the internet, will help bring this sub-collection to the attention of the general public. The hope is that the inventory will act as a springboard to grow it into a veritable numismatic collection for the City of Ghent.
