Museum

Costume and textile items from the 17th century are already extremely rare, but what makes these gloves even more special is their possible link to an important local family, the Sharington-Talbots of Lacock Abbey. During the Tudor and Stuart periods, gloves such as these were symbols of wealth and sophistication. They were unlikely to have …

Continue reading “Glorious Gloves! The Latest Addition to the Museum Collection”

During the Tudor and Stuart period, gloves such as these were symbols of wealth and sophistication. They were unlikely to have been worn to protect the hands or keep warm but instead were displayed, either hooked into a belt or casually carried in the hand, where the colourful silks and silver threads would have drawn …

Continue reading “Gloves, c.1625”

Queen & Country Exhibition at Chippenham Museum 14 May – 23 July This summer the country celebrates Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee as she becomes the first British monarch to spend 70 years on the throne. This year also marks the 380th anniversary of the start of the English Civil War. Pitting the monarchy against …

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30 May – 4 June at the Yelde Hall, Chippenham Chippenham Museum’s after school Photo Club is embarking on an ambitious project to commemorate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee through the faces of 70 people from the town. Club members, aged 11-18, aim to take a photograph of someone from the community born every year of …

Continue reading “70 years 70 Faces – A Jubilee Project By Chippenham Museum’s Photoclub”

During my week of work experience at Chippenham Museum I was able to take on many tasks and attempt many activities, one of these was researching a pattern 1796 light cavalry sabre from the museum storage. The sabre was initially designed by a British Cavalry Officer in the 16th Light Dragoons named John Gaspard le …

Continue reading “Guest Blog: work experience student William shares his research into a 200 year old sword”

Take part in this project by Chippenham Museum and their Crafty Café We think bunting is a key part of any royal celebration, so we are asking for your help to provide a very special decoration. In 2022, Queen Elizabeth II will become the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years …

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Mark Golder reflects on LGBT+ themes within our current exhibition ‘Wiltshire on Paper: Post-War Prints From the Bath Academy of Art’, open until 2 April. This exhibition has been made possible thanks to Mark Golder and Brian Thompson’s generous gift of works to Chippenham Museum’s permanent collection, in memory of their friend Arthur Norman.   …

Continue reading “Guest Blog: Mark Golder for LGBTQ+ History Month”

In the UK, February is LGBT+ history month. Queer stories have often been overlooked or marginalised, so in this blog we take a look at the stories behind everyday objects in our collection that reveal the lives and experiences of some of the LGBTQ+ community both past and present.

Today Christmas is mainly celebrated on 25 December, however historically this was seen as the beginning of the festive period, with 12 days of feasting and celebrating, concluding on Twelfth Night. The actual date for Twelfth Night depends on how the 12 days of Christmas are calculated, with different Christian traditions giving it as either …

Continue reading “The Importance of Twelfth Night for the History of our Town”

Benjamin Barker was an accomplished landscape painter from a family of artists that included his father, Benjamin the Elder (1729-1803), and brothers, Thomas (1769-1847) and Joseph (1782-1809). Born in Pontypool, Wales in 1776, the family moved to fashionable Bath in 1783, where there would have been greater opportunities for the artistic family. In 1801 he …

Continue reading “Cottage near Chippenham, c.1810”