Pitt Rivers Museum

University of Oxford
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England

Website

www.prm.ox.ac.uk

E-mail

General enquiries

prm@prm.ox.ac.uk

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

01865 270927

Fax

General fax number

01865 270943

All information is supplied by the venues or providers themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.

The Pitt Rivers Museum is the University of Oxford's museum of anthropology and world archaeology. Founded in 1884 following a gift to the University from General Pitt-Rivers it retains its unique period atmosphere with dense displays of artefacts, many in the original wooden display cabinets. As a result, it has often been described as a 'Museum of Museums'.

The new extension and restored entrance which provide better provisions for the public, students and staff is now complete.

The entire collection of this museum is a Designated Collection of national importance.

Venue Type:

Museum

Opening hours

10.00-16.30 Tuesday to Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays;
12.00-16.30 Monday.
Please check for details of Christmas and Easter opening.

Admission charges

Admission Free

Getting there

The entrance to the Pitt Rivers Museum is through the Oxford University Museum Natural History (OUMNH) on Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PW. The Pitt Rivers' entrance is at the far wall of the OUMNH. Visitors need to walk across the ground floor to reach it.

Parking: The Museum unfortunately cannot offer parking facilities. Vehicles parking in the University's Science Area without a permit are liable to be wheel-clamped. We suggest that you look for parking in either the side streets around the Museum or at the multi-storey car park. We can offer disabled parking, please call 01865 270927 to book a space.

By bus: There are also five Park and Ride car parks (situated on the A40 at Headington; Red Bridge at the bottom of the Abingdon Road, near Kennington; Pear Tree Roundabout, Woodstock Road; Water Eaton, Banbury Road, Kidlington and Seacourt at Botley). The coach park is on Oxpens Road. The walk from the coach park and the multi-storey car parks to the Museum is about half an hour.

By train: Oxford train station is approximately a 20 minute level walk to the Museum.

By cycle: There are bicycle racks outside the Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

General services and facilities

Brochure or leaflet available with directions to museum
Guided tours
Information point provided
Pre-booking service for groups
Volunteering scheme offered
Online shop
Membership and/or Friends scheme offered
General audio-guide available
Foreign language leaflet or brochure available
Toilets
Shop
Lecture theatre
Late night openings
Bicycle park
Cinema/film screening facilities

Children and families

Events and resources for children and families
Baby changing facilities
Buggy parking facilities

Disability access

Audio guides specifically for blind and partially sighted people
Events/teaching/resources for people with disabilities
Induction loops in lecture theatres
Large print information and/or interpretation
Touch exhibits
Handling sessions
Parking for disabled available
Toilets for disabled
Wheelchair access to all public areas
Wheelchairs available for loan

Schools services and facilities

Direct teaching services for schools
Member of staff available with responsibility for education
Primary school education service available
Printed/audio-visual information available for schools
Secondary school education service available
Special educational needs education services available
Professional development and training for teachers
Online teaching materials available
Early years education service available
Support for extended schools services available
Education facilities available

Research and adult learning

Academic publications and resources available
Adult lectures and courses held
Teaching/resources available for HE/FE students
Community outreach programme/service
Library
Mail order service available
Research facilities for academics
Study facilities

Commercial and hire services

Licensing programme
Commercial filming service
Facilities for private functions and events
Meeting room available
Studio/working space available
Conference facilities available

Additional info

Induction loop available in museum shop.
Please pre-book disabled parking spaces.

University of Oxford
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England

Website

www.prm.ox.ac.uk

E-mail

General enquiries

prm@prm.ox.ac.uk

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

01865 270927

Fax

General fax number

01865 270943

The entire collection of the Pitt Rivers Museum is a Designated Collection of national importance.

The Pitt Rivers Museum takes the world for its province, with collections of artefacts that date from earliest times to the present day and extensive photographic and archival collections. The museum is a resource of international importance for the study of human cultures and their history. Its collections span all parts of the world from prehistory to the present day and celebrate the range of human creativity and technological ingenuity.

The collections are arranged typologically with material organised not by origin or date but by function to show how, at different times and in different parts of the world, people solved a wide range of everyday problems. Every aspect of human life is presented in displays of basketry, body adornment, magic, masks, medicine, music making, navigation and textiles, among dozens of other themes. These are complemented by a number of culture-specific displays, such as that devoted to material from the South Seas collected on Captain Cook's Second famous Voyage of Discovery.

Collection details

World Cultures, Weapons and War, Toys and Hobbies, Religion, Photography, Music, Costume and Textiles, Archaeology, Agriculture

Key artists and exhibits

The museum's displays contain an almost overwhelming variety of material from masks to magic, mummies to musical instruments. Highlights include a 40ft Totem pole, a witch in a bottle and a temporary exhibition of photographs taken in Iraq, by the renound traveller Wilfred Thesiger.
Designated Collection

Collections services

Object identification and/or written enquiry service
Public access available to collections information
Specialist publications on collections available
General guide to collections available
Object study facilities available (enquire in advance)

University of Oxford
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England

Website

www.prm.ox.ac.uk

E-mail

General enquiries

prm@prm.ox.ac.uk

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

01865 270927

Fax

General fax number

01865 270943

Exhibition details are listed below, you may need to scroll down to see them all.

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

3 February — 17 March 2012 *on now

The Fine Art and 3D Design students from the Art & Design Foundation course at Oxford Brookes have been eagerly making work over the Christmas break for a special exhibition. Selected work will explore the necessity of inventing and why people come up with solutions to help with everyday life.

This is a joint exhibition with the Museum of the History of Science.

Suitable for

Any age

Where

Pitt Rivers Museum and the Museum of the History of Science

Website

http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/brookes.html

The Nature of Curious Objects: Sue Johnson’s Paper Museum

24 January — 10 June 2012 *on now

Following the success of her exhibition The Curious Nature of Objects on the Museum's lower gallery in early 2011, American artist Sue Johnson returns to the Pitt Rivers to show fifteen new works inspired by images of familiar types of ethnographic and archaeological objects in the illustrated catalogue of General Pitt-Rivers’s ‘second’ collection. Working in gouache, watercolour, and pencil on paper, and drawing on her extensive knowledge of natural history illustration, museums, and archives, Johnson redisplays and reorders familiar objects in new contexts and new juxtapositions. Sue Johnson is an associate of the 'Rethinking Pitt-Rivers' project funded by The Leverhulme Trust (2009–2012).

Suitable for

Any age

Where

Long Gallery, Pitt Rivers Museum

Website

http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/new.html

Made for Trade

18 July 2011 — 27 January 2013 *on now

Indian silk textiles, a solar-powered prayer wheel, Maasai jewellery, a brick made of tea, parrot feather ornaments, moccasins with red ‘Stroud’ cloth, lustrous glass beads from Venice… from local markets to global networks this exhibition offers insights into the world of trade through the Museum’s remarkable collections.
The exhibition forms part of a five-year project involving ten major European ethnography museums, entitled “Ethnography Museums and World Cultures - RIME”. The project is funded with support from the European Commission.

Suitable for

Any age

Where

Pitt Rivers Museum

Admission

Open at the same time as the Museum

Website

http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk

University of Oxford
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England

Website

www.prm.ox.ac.uk

E-mail

General enquiries

prm@prm.ox.ac.uk

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

01865 270927

Fax

General fax number

01865 270943

Events details are listed below. You may need to scroll down or click on headers to see them all. For events that don't have a specific date see the 'Resources' tab above.

The Nature of Curious Objects: Sue Johnson's Paper Museum

11 February 2012

The General’s second collection is currently the focus of the research project ‘Rethinking Pitt-Rivers’ being undertaken at the Museum. Sue's work, linked to this research, is on display in the Long Gallery from 24 January until 10 June 2012.
Followed by Q&A.

Suitable for

14-15
16-17
18+
Not suitable for children

When

2:30-3:30pm

Where

Pitt Rivers Museum

Website

http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/spotlights.html

February Half-term: Explorers and Adventurers

14 February 2012

Fun ways to explore the museum and discover more about our exciting collections. Make something super to take home. FREE drop-in activities ideal for children aged 5+. All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Suitable for

Any age
Family friendly

When

1-4pm

Where

Pitt Rivers Museum and Oxford University Museum of Natural History

Pitt Rivers Museum

Website

Website

E-mail

General enquiries

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

Fax

General fax number

Venue Type:

Additional info

Website

Website

E-mail

General enquiries

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

Fax

General fax number

Collection details

Key artists and exhibits

Collections services

Website

Website

E-mail

General enquiries

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

Fax

General fax number

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Suitable for

Where

Website

The Nature of Curious Objects: Sue Johnson’s Paper Museum

Suitable for

Where

Website

Made for Trade

Suitable for

Where

Admission

Website

Website

Website

E-mail

General enquiries

Telephone

Recorded general information, group bookings and option to speak our Receptionist

Fax

General fax number

The Nature of Curious Objects: Sue Johnson's Paper Museum

Suitable for

When

Where

Website

February Half-term: Explorers and Adventurers

Suitable for

When

Where

Website

February Half-term: Explorers and Adventurers

Suitable for

When

Where

Website

February Half-term: Explorers and Adventurers

Suitable for

When

Where

Website

Photographing Bhutanese Dance: the Michael Aris Collection

Suitable for

When

Where

Website

Pitt Stop: Food for Thought

Suitable for

When

Where