Malvern Museum
 Abbey Gateway, Malvern town centre | |
  The location of Malvern Museum within Worcestershire | |
| Established | 1979 |
|---|---|
| Location | Malvern, Worcestershire |
| Type | Local |
| Public transit access | Great Malvern railway station |
| Website | http://www.malvernmuseum.co.uk |
The Malvern Museum in Great Malvern, the town centre of Malvern, Worcestershire, England, is located in the Abbey Gateway, the former gateway to the Great Malvern Priory. The museum was established in 1979 and is owned and managed by the Malvern Museum Society Ltd, a registered charity.[1] The Priory Gatehouse was a gift to the museum in 1980 from the de Vere Group, the owners of the neighbouring Abbey Hotel, and is staffed by volunteers. As such, the building itself is the museum's major exhibit.[2]
Among the museum's exhibits are many local artifacts and archeological findings dating from the Iron Age hill fort at the British Camp, to recent history. A series of rooms depicts different periods of history and include lifelike displays and information boards. Themes covered include natural history, Malvern Priory, Malvern Forest and Chase, life in Victorian Malvern, Edward Elgar, the Malvern Festival, the history of the local economy including the 19th century hydrotherapy using Malvern water (instrumental in the settlement's rapid growth from a village to a large town), the development of radar by TRE, and Morgan Motor Company cars.[3]
The museum is open daily, 10.30 to 17.00, from 25 March to 31 October (closed Wednesdays except for school visits during term time).
Priory gatehouse
Locally referred to as the Abbey Gateway, it was built around 1430 and is the second oldest building in Malvern after the Norman priory church. The gatehouse is the only remaining building of the 12th century Benedictine monastery that was dismantled in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry VIII of England.[4][5]
References
- ^ "Malvern Museum of Local History". The Malvern Museum Society. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
- ^ "Malvern Museum - An unexpected Jewel in Malvern's crown". Retrieved 28 January 2010.
- ^ "Malvern Museum of Local history: Explore the Museum". The Malvern Museum Society. Retrieved 28 January 2010.
- ^ Remfrey, Paul (1998). The Herefordshire Beacon of King Harold II and the Earls of Hereford and Worcester. ukprint.com. ISBN 9781899376735.
- ^ Weaver, Cora (1993). The Priory Gatehouse of Great Malvern. Aldine Press. ISBN 1-873809-06-9.