Dorset

Mason Bee at Work © Solvin Zankl Wildlife Photographer of the Year

November 19, 2023

Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Wildlife Photographer of the Year, the world-famous exhibition from the Natural History Museum, is returning to Dorset Museum & Art Gallery

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Valley of Stones (c) Mark North 2015

November 3, 2023

Revealing the Hidden Heritage of West Dorset | Dr Anne Teather

In July 2023, Anne Teather and the organisation she runs, Past Participate, made national headlines when their discovery of a rare “polissoir”, or polishing stone in the Valley of the Stones, west Dorset, was announced. The stone was used 5,000 years ago by Neolithic people to hone tools such as axes. In this afternoon's talk, Anne reveals the story of this major find, as well as the work Past Participate do to connect local people with the archaeology of the region.

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Museums-after-Dark

September 15, 2023

Museums After Dark 2023

Discover three incredible Dorchester museums on one unforgettable night.

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John Brown of Dorchester_thumbnail

September 14, 2023

John Brown in Dorchester

Discover the story of John Brown in this special talk for Black History Month.

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Dorset-Museum-Objects-The-Newton-Peverill-Jadeite-Axe

September 6, 2023

What’s new in the British and Irish Neolithic? | Dr Alison Sheridan

While the past doesn’t change, our knowledge and understanding of it are being transformed by new discoveries and new research – and this is especially the case with the Neolithic period, the time of the first farming communities from the late 5th millennium to around 2500 BCE. This lecture offers some highlights from the past decade or so.

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Lynx by Trevor Parsons

August 20, 2023

Nature Heals | Photography Screening

Join us for a mindful moment at the Corn Exchange. Drop in and relax in front of a superb display of nature photography by Trevor Parsons, shown on a loop on our giant projection screen and accompanied by beautiful music and nature soundtrack.

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Rewilding later prehistory

August 19, 2023

‘Rewilding’ later prehistory: Archaeological wildlife and its role in contemporary nature recovery | Anwen Cooper

Climate change and biodiversity loss are, understandably, of growing interest to a wide cross-section of people. David Attenborough’s recent ‘Wild Isles’ series both awakened us to the magical wildlife of the British Isles and warned us of its extreme fragility.

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Part of the Chettle Grave Group ready for display. Copyright Trustees of the British Museum.

August 19, 2023

Traditions and Transitions: The Story of the Chettle Grave Group | Sophia Adams

A locally made wine strainer, an old mirror and a blue glass jar perhaps from Cologne. These are just three of the eight artefacts found in 2003, buried together on land within Chettle Park, Dorset.

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Round House

July 20, 2023

Reimagining Roundhouses | Trevor Creighton

In this special lecture for the 2024 Festival of Archaeology, Trevor Creighton will discuss the way in which we have come to form our ideas of what late prehistoric roundhouses were like, and why we need to reimagine them.

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