The Salisbury Museum

The Salisbury Museum tells the story of a unique landscape which has been the cradle of continuous human achievement for over half a million years. 

The main strength of the museum rests in its archaeological collections: these include prehistoric material from South Wiltshire, including Stonehenge; the Pitt Rivers’ Wessex collection; and a fine medieval collection including finds from Old Sarum, Clarendon Palace and the city itself.

Based in the King’s House, a Grade I listed building located opposite Salisbury Cathedral, the museum building formerly housed a teacher training college and was the inspiration for an episode in Thomas Hardy’s novel Jude the Obscure.

Now, the King’s House history is continuing to be made. Salisbury Museum has partnered with two contractors to redevelop the building. While this redevelopment is occurring, some exhibits in the museum will be temporarily closed.

Contact

Address: The Salisbury Museum, The King’s House, 65 The Close, Salisbury, SP1 2EN

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Fashioning Our World

Fashioning Our World Unpicking the past to thread together the future The Salisbury Museum  Dorset Museum & Art Gallery   The Salisbury Museum’s Fashioning Our World project is showing young

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The Warminster Jewel, an Anglo Saxon aestel 871-899 AD. With kind permission of Salisbury Museum ©

The Warminster Jewel

The Warminster Jewel The extraordinary ninth century AD bejewelled aestel found by metal detectorists From: The Salisbury Museum Found near Cley Hill, Warminster, in 1987; it’s the only one of

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Purple cape with white embroidery and fringing.

Millicent Fawcett’s cape

Millicent Fawcett’s cape This purple cape is thought to have belonged to women’s suffrage campaigner, Millicent Fawcett. From: The Salisbury Museum The colours of suffrage Charlotte Fawcett donated this embroidered

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Sawfish are also called carpenter sharks...but they are rays, not sharks!

There’s also a species called a sawshark, but that’s, well, a shark!

What the heck is a lek?

Males great bustards perform spectacular courtship displays, gathering at a ‘lek’ or small display ground to try to impress the females.

Road Runner!

The great bustard has a dignified slow walk but tends to run when disturbed, rather than fly.

Belly Buster!

The hen-bird on display at The Salisbury Museum was one of the last great bustards to be eaten in the town!

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