Museums Sheffield: Weston Park
At Museums Sheffield: Weston Park you can explore the world and its past, from millions of years ago to the present day.
Children and adults will love the animated new displays, specially designed to delight even our littlest explorers. From Egyptian Mummies, to a traditional butchers shop. From Snowy the polar bear, to living ants and bees. The city's amazing collections of beautiful, varied and unusual treasures will be brought to life by fascinating histories, incredible facts and hands-on interactives.
Fun-filled, creative activities are available daily for families and school groups. An attractive new café serves fresh and tasty refreshments. All this, combined with regularly changing exhibitions and displays, means there are plenty of reasons to return time after time.
Venue Type:
Museum
Additional info
There are up to 6 disabled spaces given by the University of Sheffield off Mushroom lane opposite the entrance to the terrace leading to the café. There is access through here straight onto the terrace area and up to the main entrance or through the café.
History Lab
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
History Lab is a place for budding sleuths to help us find answers to some of the intriguing questions history has thrown our way.
Just why did someone bury a hoard of coins under Fargate? Can you guess what the mystery objects dug up in Sheffield were used for? You can see the amazing Benty Grange saxon helmet here and dress up as a Victorian servant.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/history-lab
About Art
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
About Art takes a different approach to displaying art in a gallery.
You'll still find wonderful paintings from Sheffield's collection here, but you'll also discover more about where artists find their inspiration, the materials they use, and how to read things like colour and symbolism when looking at art.
Works on display in the gallery include Godfrey Kneller's Hortense Mancini, Duchess of Mazarin(1693) and L S Lowry's Meeting Point (1965).
About Art is also the home of recent addition Selkie the Seal, carved from beautiful alabaster. Don't forget to create your own artwork and hang it in the gallery before you leave.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/about-art
Sheffield Life and Times
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
Sheffield Life & Times tells the story of the city from the point of view of the people who have lived here.
From the weird and wonderful neolithic stone carvings of the peak district, through to the troubled days of the miner's strike and Sheffield's regeneration, this gallery shows what makes this city special.
You'll discover the natural resources which helped turn Sheffield into the 'Steel City', the slums of Victorian Sheffield, the city's radical political past, and the impact of post-war planning and immigration. Alongside real life displays such as Burton's butcher's shop and relics from the Sheffield Flood of 1864 you'll find paintings of Sheffield from the city's collection and a host of interactives.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/sheffield-life-and-times
Arctic World
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
Before Weston Park closed for restoration, visitors were asked to vote for their favourite object. Snowy the polar bear won. Children from local schools helped design a special place in the new museum for Snowy. Arctic World is a result of their ideas. It answers the questions the children asked about life in the North American Arctic. Say hello to Snowy, meet the polar bear cubs, and have a go at building your own mini igloo.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/arctic-world
What on Earth!
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
What on Earth! is an interactive introduction to the natural world and a showcase for Sheffield's amazing natural history collections.
In Close to Home, you can see and hear the animals that can be found living on the moors, in the woods or even in your own home. Explore the Weird and Wonderful area where you can design your own creatures, or pay a visit to the museum's very own beehive and ant colony.
Take a stroll through the ancient lands exhibit, but watch out for the hyenas, giant millipedes and sharks! In the Power of Nature section, find out how wind and water turns boulders into mud and why dung beetles are stronger than elephants.
From spring 2014 What on Earth! will be home to a new display exploring the ecosystem of Greno Wood, an ancient woodland in the north of the city. Natural Connections has been developed in partnership with Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust to explore the links between the diverse species which live in Greno Wood.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/what-on-earth!
Treasures
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
In 2012 the Treasures gallery underwent a major redisplay and now showcases some of the remarkable highlights of the Sheffield's World Cultures collection, exploring their links with the city and its people.
The gallery illustrates the diversity of Sheffield’s cultural heritage, showcasing objects that have travelled many thousands of miles to the region. The exhibits on display have been developed by a group of young people who, along with local communities, have worked with Museums Sheffield to share the stories of these objects and look at how they found their way into the city’s collections.
In the Treasures gallery displays visitors can see:
• A crocodile skull bought back to the city from India in the late 1800s. Sheffield’s Fred Webster was attacked by the Crocodile, but escaped with his life when the crocodile was shot. When the contents of the crocodile’s stomach were examined, several items of jewellery were discovered suggesting a previous human victim.
• A knife made in Sheffield in 1835 by Joseph Elliot. Elliot had businesses all over Europe and the Americas and sold the knife to the Sioux people of North America, who crafted its deer hide sheath. The knife was later discovered by Sheffield collector, John Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, the 2nd Baron of Wharncliffe, who brought it back to the city.
• A set of ornate 19th century Japanese dolls given as a gift to local industrialist Sir Arthur Balfour. The conservation and display of the dolls was made possible thanks to the generosity of Museums Sheffield’s supporters.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/treasures
Natural Connections
- 1 November 2014 — 1 November 2018 *on now
Museums Sheffield has partnered with Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust to create a new permanent display at Weston Park museum.
Using Greno Wood in north Sheffield as an example, Natural Connections explores the links between the diverse species which living teh city's green spaces. Visitors can discover who eats who in a giant food web, featuring specimens from the museum’s collections, and also have the chance to take a closer look at some of the Wood's mini-beasts through an interactive microscope. The display also feature a new animation highlighting the importance of working to protect the wood’s wildlife habitats.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/exhibitions/current/natural-connections
Joe Scarborough, Sheffield Through the Ages
- 6 November 2015 — 18 October 2017 *on now
Joe Scarborough’s ambitious city panorama chronicles some of Sheffield’s iconic landmarks throughout the decades. Spanning an incredible 30 feet, the work took six years to complete and celebrates many familiar city sites, from the Tinsley Towers to the Town Hall.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
Website
Small Stories: At Home in a Dolls' House
- 5 August 2017 — 7 January 2018 *on now
This exhibition, on loan from the V&A Museum of Childhood, is a treat for adults and children alike.
If you love to play with dolls at home then you'll love these 12 beautiful dolls' houses, all from different eras. Characters and scenes are made up within the home to tell you the story of each room. You'll get to peer in on marriages, parties, politics and even crime.
Interactive exhibits mean you can listen to the dolls and hear the stories of the people who live and work in these beautiful homes. With everything from country mansions to newly built council houses, visitors will get a taste of what life was like for everyone for the last 300 years.
Museums Sheffield will celebrate the launch of the exhibition with a free, fun-packed day of family activities on Saturday 5 August, 11am-4pm. On the day visitors can enjoy a range of creative sessions inspired by life in miniature, as well as face painting, music and more.
Suitable for
- Any age
Website
Sheffield Wildlife Watch Club
http://www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/coresite/html/events.asp?site=19&id=1069
Sheffield Wildlife Trust and Museums Sheffield have joined forces and are looking for nature detectives aged 5–13 years to join a new group, to explore the outdoors and have fun getting closer to wildlife. The club meets on the 3rd Saturday of the month, 11.00-12.30.
How to obtain
Sessions are free, with a small charge for refreshments.Do book in advance as places are limited. Children 8 and under must be accompanied by an adult. For further details about Wildlife Watch or to book a place, please call 0114 263 4335.
Art Cart
Join the Art Cart for some creative fun as it travels around the Museum, for children aged 4-11 years from 11.30-15.45.
How to obtain
Art Cart is free - just drop in. Children must be accompanied by an adult. For more information, contact info@museums-sheffield.org.uk.
Breaking Chains - Sheffield Civil Rights
http://www.mylearning.org/overview.asp?journeyid=460
Exploring the role local campaigners played in securing worker rights in Sheffield, by looking at a dramaisation of a visit to Sheffield by Olaudah Equiano, a former slave who campaigned for the abolition of the slave trade.
Publisher
- This resource was produced as part of the MLA-funded My Learning project.
Txt Manor: Mary Queen of Scots in Sheffield
http://www.mylearning.org/overview.asp?journeyid=321
Describing a community project with young people at risk of exclusion on the Manor estates in Sheffield. Young people learned about historical facts and characters through drama and art based sessions. The resource also provides information about Sheffield Manor Lodge and the lives of Mary Queen of Scots, Elizabeth I, George Talbot and Bess of Hardwick.
Publisher
- This resource was produced as part of the MLA-funded My Learning project.
Museums Sheffield: Weston Park
Weston Park
Western Bank
Sheffield
South Yorkshire
S10 2TP
England
Website
www.museums-sheffield.org.uk/museums/weston-park/home
General enquiries
Telephone
Bookings for Tours, Talks, Events and School Trips
0114 278 2655
Main Reception
0114 278 2600
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