Museum after hours
Museum after hours
19 May 2022, 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Join us for an opportunity to explore the Museum and galleries in our free monthly late opening.
Important Notice
On 10 February 2023
Artist Dorset Gallery
will be closed all-day
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Opening hours:
Daily: 9.00am - 4.30pm
Sunday: 10.00am - 4.00pm
Bank Holidays: 10.00am - 4.00pm -
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People's Dorset
Sweep through around 500,000 years of people’s history, from the Palaeolithic to the present day, on Dorset’s key themes of land, sea and community. Marvel at objects from some of Britain’s most important archaeological sites, from spectacular Bronze Age gold and finds from Maiden Castle – one of Britain’s largest Iron Age hillforts – to treasures from Roman Dorchester. Let your fingers walk Dorset’s ancient landscape on a large touchscreen. Then head forwards in time to see the belongings of Dorset’s prestigious families alongside items revealing agricultural workers’ hard lives. Move on to 20th-century Dorset to see how inventive people, creativity and enterprise helped shape its recent history.
c.6th to 7th century CE
Germanic style glass bowl fragment
This was a strongly curved, low drinking vessel with molten glass trailed around it for decoration. It is rare and only normally seen in the east and southeast of England.
43-410 CE
Engraved glass bowl from Colliton Park, Dorchester
Engraved with followers of Dionysus, Greek god of wine.
43-410 CE
Shale table leg from a three-legged table
Found in excavations at Colliton Park, Dorchester. Kimmeridge shale was used for many objects in Roman Dorset and beyond.
c.100 BCE - 53 CE
Stone and glass beads, both local and imported
From an Iron Age burial at Langton Herring, these beads belonged to a young woman.
Early Bronze Age
Bronze Age beaker
Beakers of this type are associated with the first objects made from metal. This beaker was found in Broadmayne.
70-50 BCE
Hoard of sixteen gold Durotrigian staters
Staters were the earliest coinage in Britain. Hoards of them were sometimes treated in similar ways to other deposits of special objects.
43-410 CE
Bronze plaque fragment, with engraved figure
The engraved figure of Minerva discovered during excavations of the Roman Temple, Maiden Castle.
43-410 CE
Plait of red human hair
Hair was preserved in several graves at the Roman cemetery at Poundbury because bodies were packed with gypsum. Women wore their hair long, often plaited and arranged on their head. The plaits were made of up to six strands, suggesting the help of a maid or hairdresser.
Mid-3rd century to mid-4th century CE
Glass jug from Bucknowle Roman Villa
A large, oval-shaped glass jug with distinctive chain handle. A rare survivor, this is one of the finest examples of Roman glassware ever discovered in Britain.
c.1935
What's on
3 October 2022 - 8 February 2023
Unmasked
Unmasked is a local, voluntary project that began in the dark days of March 2020, when a new disease called COVID-19 literally stopped the world as we knew it.
Find out more3 December 2022 - 26 February 2023
I Grew Up 80s
This winter visitors to Dorset Museum are invited to take a trip back in time with the nostalgia-filled exhibition I Grew Up 80s.
Find out more3 February 2023 - 10 March 2023, 10am -12.45pm
Drawing Into Life – 6 Week Creative Course with Helen Garrett
Winter can be a deeply creative time. We notice luminous landscapes, animals scuttling into their shelters or out searching for food, tempestuous weather patterns, colours, and endless changing skies.
Find out more5 February 2023, 10:30am-12:00pm
I Grew Up 80s ArtyFacts
Create your own weaving crafts inspired by our I Grew Up 80s exhibition.
Find out more7 February 2023, 11:00am - 12:00pm
Archaeology Highlights Tour
Explore archaeological treasures held by Dorset Museum – from Bronze Age gold to medieval silver - in this volunteer-led tour.
Find out more14 February 2023, 10:00am-12:00pm
I Grew Up 80s ArtyFacts
Use modelling clay, plasticine, and play dough to create your own 1980s inspired creatures.
Find out more14 February 2023, 11:00am - 12:00noon
Dorset Museum Highlights Tour
Explore 250 million years of Dorset’s history in this volunteer-led highlights tour of Dorset Museum. Discover Roman mosaics, fossils from the Jurassic Coast, Thomas Hardy manuscripts and the sculptures of Elisabeth Frink – and plenty more along the way.
Find out more14 February 2023, 4:30pm - 6:00pm
FREE | After hours relaxed opening
Visitors can explore Dorset Museum during this relaxed opening for children with neurodiverse conditions and other sensory processing difficulties. Explore the exhibition and galleries with sound levels at a minimum and screens turned off. There will also be light-touch activities in the Learning Centre.
Find out more16 February 2023, 10:00am-12:00pm
I Grew Up 80s ArtyFacts
Use modelling clay, plasticine, and play dough to create your own 1980s inspired creatures.
Find out more