Pitt Rivers Museum
Pitt Rivers Museum
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England
Website
Website
general enquiries
Telephone
01865 270927
Fax
01865 270943
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 upper gallery remains closed for research and re-display work to be carried out.
The entire collection of this museum is a Designated Collection of national importance.
Venue Type:
Museum
Additional info
Induction loop available in museum shop.
Please pre-book disabled parking spaces.
Pitt Rivers Museum
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England
Website
Website
general enquiries
Telephone
01865 270927
Fax
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
- Object study facilities available (enquire in advance)
Pitt Rivers Museum
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England
Website
Website
general enquiries
Telephone
01865 270927
Fax
01865 270943
Saturday Spotlight: Battle shields in flux
Gallery talk: Focusing on some newly acquired battle shields from Papua New Guinea, this talk will look at transformations in the significance and decoration of these shields in recent decades. Dr Michael O'Hanlon (Museum Director).
Suitable for adults and older children.
When
2:30-3pm
Where
Pitt Rivers Museum
Admission
Free, no need to book.
Easter Holidays: Eggstraordinary Easter Egg Hunt
Search the Museums with an eggstraspecial egg-hunters' trail.
Self-guided. All children must be accompanied by an adult.
Suitable for
- Family friendly
- Especially for children
When
10am-4:30pm
Where
Pitt Rivers Museum and Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Admission
Free, available during normal opening hours. Please check with Museums for Easter closure dates.
Saturday Spotlight: Re-discovering the archaeological collections in the Pitt Rivers Museum.
Gallery talk: An introduction to the current research project examining the range and significance of the Museum's World Archaeology collections. The talk covers highlights of the collection such as Stone Age African objects, artefacts from the tombs of the earliest ancient Egyptian King's, Peruvian mummy wrappings and material from Neolithic and Bronze Age Oxford. Dr Dan Hicks (Curator/Lecturer of Archaeology)
Suitable for adults and older children.
When
2:30-3pm
Where
Pitt Rivers Museum
Admission
Free, no need to book.
Pitt Rivers Museum
South Parks Road
Oxford
Oxfordshire
OX1 3PP
England
Website
Website
general enquiries
Telephone
01865 270927
Fax
01865 270943
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