Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts
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Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts | Full Time | 35 hours | Temporary 12 Month Contract (Maternity Cover)
Full Time Salary: £34,368 to £37,189
Hours: 35 hours per week | Monday - Friday
Location: National Museum of Scotland | Hybrid
National Museums Scotland is one of the leading museum groups in Europe with one of the largest and most diverse collections in the world. As an organisation our values are Creative, Inclusive, Collaborative and Forward-thinking. We are looking for enthusiastic, passionate, honest, service-driven individuals to join our Global Arts, Cultures & Design team.
Benefits of joining us as our Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts will include:
- Annually alongside your salary of £34,368 to £37,189, National Museums Scotland contributes 28.97% of this towards you being a member of the Civil Service Pension Scheme
- A generous annual leave of 28.5 days – rising to 33.5 after 5 years, plus an additional 8 paid days public holidays.
- Free access to national (and international) museums and exhibitions
- A range of wellbeing benefits including Employee Assistance Programme 24/7
- Access to all the above and morefrom day one of employment.
About the Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts role:
The position we are recruiting for is situated within the Global Arts, Cultures and Design department, and the selected candidate will be reporting to the Acting Principal Curator in the European Decorative Arts Section. The job holder will bring with them knowledge of and enthusiasm for working with collections of material culture Europe c. 1200 to 1850. They will contribute to, enhance and promote the curatorial competence of National Museums Scotland particularly with regard to European Decorative Arts and Historic Textiles. Working within a multidisciplinary organisation and with external stakeholders, the job holder will develop specialist knowledge. The job holder will contribute to the European Decorative Arts team’s efforts to engage diverse communities with the collections.
As an Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts at National Museums Scotland you will:
- Apply expert knowledge of the subject and collections to create and improve National Museums’ documentation programmes
- Assist with programmes of improvement to collections care to meet National Museums’ best practice
- Assist with the supervision of volunteers supporting curatorial work, to ensure their contribution is focused and recognised
- Contribute to the Learning & Engagement activities of National Museums on the development and delivery of projects to reach a wide variety of audiences
- Commit to good health & safety and access practice and ensure familiarity with National Museums’ health & safety and access policies, procedures and guidelines
Skills and experience we’re looking for in our Assistant Curator European Decorative Arts:
- Excellent ICT skills in Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Proven experience in paid or unpaid work in museums or a similar environment
Hiring the right person for the right job is everything to us. We want to encourage you to apply if you think this is the role for you.
Please be sure to view relevant attachments for this role (available on our Careers Portal: careers.nms.ac.uk) for full details of the position.
The closing date for this role is 26/04/2026 (26 APRIL 2026). The Selection Event is likely to take place 8/05/2026 (8 MAY 2026).
Assistant Curator (European Decorative Arts)
Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
EH1 1JF
£34,368 to £37,189 per year Generous Civil Service Pension Scheme, Holidays and more
Temporary - Full-time
Posted today
Closing date: 27/04/2026
Job reference: NMS156890
Documents
AC EDA - Recruitment Pack.docx
Assistant Curator (European Decorative Arts)
Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
£34,368 to £37,189 per year Generous Civil Service Pension Scheme, Holidays and more