Collection Blog
With a collection of four million objects to look after, new exhibitions to stage and events to host, there’s always so much going on behind the scenes at Dorset Museum.
Check in on our blog to find out more about what our staff and volunteers get up to. From researching curiosities in our collection or sharing what goes into curating an exhibition, they’ll share their stories and give you the insider’s view from one of Dorset’s top visitor attractions.

Archaeology
March 16, 2023
Dorset Museum acquires rare gold and rock crystal pendant dating to the 6th or 7th century
Dorset Museum is delighted to announce that it has acquired a rare gold and rock crystal pendant dating to the 6th or 7th century…
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Art
February 7, 2023
The Art of Seeing: An exhibition of photographs by Dorchester Camera Club
One Step Closer to Heaven by Tony Gill Dorchester Camera Club is presenting its The Art of Seeing exhibition at the Dorset Museum in Dorchester from…
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Art
February 6, 2023
Dorset Museum to reunite Gainsborough husband and wife portraits
Portraits of Elizabeth and John Bragge by Thomas Gainsborough Dorset Museum is delighted to announce that it has taken guardianship of A Portrait of Elizabeth Bragge by…
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Collection Blog
January 6, 2023
Collecting Evolutionary Ideas: Alfred Russel Wallace’s Exotic Bird Skins
In the Museum’s Natural History collection, we have over 80 bird skins collected by the naturalist, Alfred Russel Wallace. A majority were collected during…
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Literature
October 3, 2022
Bridport Prize Black Writer Residency: Stephenjohn Holgate
The Plan When I look back at my week’s residency with the Museum of Dorchester and the Bridport Prize, I have a jumble of handwritten…
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Literature
September 28, 2022
Bridport Prize Black Writer Residency: Grace Peters Clarke
When I applied for the Bridport Prize Black Writer Residency, I was excited about the prospect of spending an entire week in the countryside, with…
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Appeal
August 9, 2022
Campaign to unlock Thomas Hardy archive
Dorset Archives Trust is leading a fundraising effort to permanently unlock the internationally significant, UNESCO-listed archive of author Thomas Hardy, gifted to Dorset Museum in…
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Collection Blog
July 25, 2022
Dorset Museum’s largest and heaviest artefact ?
Some of the many artefacts in the Dorset Museum’s collections are on display in the galleries and some are held in store, but…
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Archaeology
July 18, 2022
Some Romano-British Relics found at Max Gate, Dorchester by Thomas Hardy
The following article entitled ‘Some Romano-British Relics found at Max Gate, Dorchester’ by Thomas Hardy is from the ‘Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and…
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