Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery

The museum occupies two adjoining buildings, one of which is timber-framed (originally built as a merchant’s warehouse in the 16th or early 17th Century) and the other a stone and brick building of about 1618 (the mansion of the merchant William Rowley). The buildings are among the finest in Shrewsbury and there is much debate about finding a suitable use for them once the Museums Service has moved out.

The collections of Shrewsbury Museums Service comprise about 166,000 items including Geology, Natural History, Archaeology, Social History, Fine and Decorative Arts. There are collections of national and regional importance, including excavated items from the Roman town of Viroconium at Wroxeter (such as a beautiful silver mirror, and the carved forum inscription), and large collections of Caughley and Coalport Porcelain.  Rowley’s has been bursting at the seams and this is part of the reason for the planned move.

As part of the annual Shrewsbury Summer Season, the museum will reopen daily from 14 July until 9 September, for a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes work, for the Whittingham Riddell Open Art Exhibition and as an opportunity to consult widely with local people and visitors on the redevelopment.  Admission is free. There will also be a programme of off-site exhibitions and activities, including a special exhibition about the Abbey Foregate area of Shrewsbury at the Shropshire Wildlife Trust, from 8 - 12 May.   Displays of museum objects will be installed in other SABC buildings such as the Music Hall and Rowleys itself will still be available for group and educational visits.

Telephone: 01743 361196