Free entry, donations welcome. 

The Listening Desk is an interactive sound sculpture that invites you to listen to recordings from Tyne & Wear Archives’ sound archives and get creative by making your own soundscapes.

With a user friendly touch screen you can mix the sound of a busy train station from early 20 century with a local folk song, or the sound of Sparkie Williams the talking budgie with the sound of King George V’s speech in 1928 for the opening of the Tyne Bridge – it’s up to you! With 16 historical sounds to mix and match you can create your own sounds of the north east. 

The north east sounds featured on the Listening Desk were digitised as part of the national Unlocking Our Sound Heritage project, in collaboration with the British Library.

Take a break from the hustle and bustle of the city centre every Saturday morning with a free talk from the Friends of the Laing Art Gallery. Find out more about some of the paintings in our collection and share your experience with fellow art lovers.

January Solitude by John Martin (1843).

February The Herring Season by Charles Simpson (1924)

March Isabella and the Pot of Basil by William Holman Hunt (1868)

Solitude by John Martin (1843). Laing Art Gallery.

Free, drop in.

Discovery Museum’s new exhibition explores the story of energy in the North East by looking back to the industrial revolution, and forward to the pioneering contributions in green technologies happening now across the North East region.

With exciting new hands-on displays demonstrating wind and solar power, historical science and engineering objects and even a 'cutaway' electric NISSAN Leaf car on display, Steam to Green will showcase how the North East is leading the way in green energy.

The exhibition was created in partnership with Newcastle University.

Headline sponsor: Vattenfall

Follow this link to find out more about Vattenfall our headline sponsor

Supported by: The Reece Foundation, Newcastle University, Faraday Challenge, Friends of Discovery Museum, the Headley Trust and the Art Fund.

Sponsored by: Lumo,  Tyne and Wear Metro and Northumbrian Water

Free, drop in. Donations welcome.

A new exhibition at the Laing Art Gallery explores over 200 years of landscape painting in the North of England and Scotland, focusing on the diverse and dramatic landscapes of the regions and how artists have depicted not only the world around us, but also our place within it.   

For centuries, the landscapes of the North have fascinated artists and this exhibition will focus on how these landscapes —urban, rural, land, sea, and sky— have changed. From the Romanticised visions of early artists to the more complex and sometimes harsh realities captured in later works, the paintings reveal not just the physical changes in the land, but also shifts in societal values and human experience.  

The exhibition charts thematic changes in landscape painting. It explores the idea of landscape as 'sublime,' awe-inspiring and overwhelming, and idealised or ‘picturesque,’ which was tied to notions of national identity. Some of the works examine the realities and everyday details of landscapes shaped by agriculture, industry, and urbanisation in later periods, including figures of labourers working in fields, quarries, and mines. It also explores the displacement of communities, the migration to urban centres, and the enduring connection between people and their surroundings, including conceptions of place and belonging.  

The exhibition invites visitors to reflect on the past, understand the present, and consider the future of these ever-changing landscapes.

Romance to Realities: The Northern Landscape and Shifting Identities includes works by early pioneers of British landscape art such as John Knox, Alexander Nasmyth, and John Martin through to modern and contemporary works by Anne Redpath, L.S. Lowry, and Joan Eardley.  

This exhibition is organised in collaboration with The Fleming Collection and will bring together works from what is considered the finest collection of Scottish art outside public institutions with paintings from the Laing's outstanding permanent collection.  

This collection of free family trails invites you to explore the museum, engage with various objects, and collect prizes. 

You can use the trail up to four times across one, two, three, or four visits. Complete each trail to earn a sticker. 

If you complete all four trails, you'll earn a special Golden Murray sticker and have the chance to enter a prize draw for a Murray the Mole toy. 

For more information, please visit the Welcome Desk. 

Travel to the museum by Tyne and Wear Metro and up to three children aged 11 and under can travel for free with a fare-paying adult.

The exhibition explores Johnson’s lived experience of rheumatoid arthritis and the subsequent impact of disability on her artistic practice. The works on display have been chosen from a large body of Johnson's work, which was donated to the Laing by the Estate of Nerys Johnson in November 2022. 

The archive is comprised of thousands of works on paper, including sketchbooks, prints, and watercolours, dating from throughout her artistic career.  

Johnson is most well-known for the vibrant and often intense colours in her work combined with dramatic and abstract forms of flowers, often set against dark backdrops. Her work, however, is varied—she uses different media and includes a variety of subjects beyond flowers, notably including self-portraits, abstract nudes, and architectural motifs.  

She was also interested in movement and states of change, which began with studies she produced as a student of Fine Art in Newcastle. During this time, she began to actively consider the parallels between human and plant forms, an important theme that extended throughout her life.     

As part of the exhibition, the Laing Art Gallery has commissioned Surface Area Dance Theatre, a live performance organisation that works at the interface between sign language, D/deaf culture, and dance, to develop and produce a performance to camera in response to the Nerys Johnson archive, titled Down Amongst the Plants.  

Down Amongst the Plants pays tribute to Johnson’s engagement with the rhythms of nature through Butoh, a form of Japanese dance. The choreographer of the performance, Vangeline, is the artistic director of the internationally acclaimed New York Butoh Institute, based in New York, USA.  

Johnson was not only an artist, but also a curator. Her curatorial career began at the Laing Art Gallery in 1968, when she took up the post as a Keeper of Fine Art. She eventually became the Keeper in Charge of the Durham Light Infantry Museum and Arts Centre (DLI) in 1970. During this time, the museum’s Contemporary Art Centre became a regional hub for art, attracting internationally acclaimed artists like Bridget Riley and Henry Moore. 

Nerys Johnson: Disability and Practice celebrates the richness of Johnson’s life and work and explores how her individual artistic practice flourished with the support of her vast social network. 

Discover our What's On page to explore our events programme. 

Find out more at Railway 200.

Discover our What's On page to explore our events programme. 

Find out more about North Shields 800 here: Visit North Tyneside

A small, friendly group who meet in the gallery to enjoy drawing and painting together.

New members are welcome to join, whatever your level of skill and experience.

Please note, this is not a taught class. Instead, it's an opportunity to work on your art in good company and inspiring surroundings. You'll need to bring your own materials and equipment. Please note that oil paints and aerosol or fixative sprays are not permitted. The group is suitable for adults. 

There's plenty of opportunity for chat and skill sharing at this supportive group. We use shared tables, or you're welcome to borrow a gallery stool and sketch around the gallery. 

Some refreshments are provided.

To join, or try a session, please contact:

Kari Lawson
Email: Karimlawson@gmail.com
Tel: 07867 494 421

Journeys is a project and exhibition that explores the experiences of individuals impacted by organ donation and transplantation, visualised through maps and objects.

The project, developed by the NIHR Blood and Transplant Research Unit in Organ Donation and Transplantation at Cambridge and Newcastle Universities and in collaboration with community publishers Foundation Press, invited participants to create maps to illustrate their unique journeys. In addition to the maps, participants selected objects that played significant roles in their experiences.

Real-life journeys can be incredibly challenging, especially when someone needs an organ transplant or when caring for someone who does. It's the same if someone becomes a living donor or starts a career in organ donation and transplantation research. We hope the experiences in this exhibition give you a new perspective on organ donation and transplantation, allowing you to consider what you would do in similar circumstances. 

Sustainable Clay explores the environmental impact of this naturally occurring material. Potters and artists have long valued clay for its connection to a particular place, the very earth beneath our feet, but they are increasingly concerned about the sustainability of this material. From industrial mining to international transportation, the toxicity of glaze ingredients to the intense energy and heat required every time the kiln is fired, contemporary artists are questioning the sustainability of clay and adapting their work in response.

All of the contemporary artists in this exhibition have a link to the North East of England, through study, teaching, residencies or commissions. This reflects the important role of Newcastle University’s Fine Art Department as a centre for ceramic creativity and innovation. As this exhibition shows, the North East provides them with a unique context – a place where the industrial production of ceramics once thrived due to plentiful supplies of coal, the clay that was dug up as a by-product, and the waterways and railways that transported raw materials and finished products around the globe. Clay continues to be a global commodity and sustainability is now a global concern.

The artists featured in this exhibition are taking an experimental approach to clay as a sculptural material while striving for sustainability within their creative processes. Some are digging local clay to work with or finding more sustainable ways to fire their kilns, others are no longer firing their clay or choosing not to glaze their work, and some are using their ceramic skills to work with alternative materials.

Sustainable Clay features work by 12 artists at different stages of their careers: Wolfgang Weileder, Laurie Powell, Katie Cuddon, Shitanshu Mauyra, Andrew Burton, Lady Kitt, Rosie McLachlan, Brigitte Jurack, Paul Scott, Xiang Yang, Eva Masterman and Bethany Stead. Their work will accompanied by studio interviews, filmed by Jason Thompson, and an introductory space with highlights from the Laing and Shipley Art Gallery’s outstanding ceramics collections.

This exhibition has been curated as a collaboration between Matthew Jarratt, Visiting Professor of Creative Practice, Newcastle University and the Hatton Gallery.  

Image: Cumbrian Blue(s), Sellafield No:9, 5/5. Transfer print collage on bone china platter with platinum, 410mm x 345mm x 24mm. Paul Scott 2005.

Watch interviews with the artists on YouTube.

This gallery showcases smaller archaeological finds discovered at Arbeia since excavations began in 1875. 

Featuring

• The best preserved Roman ring-mail shirt in the UK, a fantastically intricate piece of armour.
• Imperial lead sealings from the household of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus (who used Arbeia as his base during his Scottish invasion).
• Fine examples of Roman jewellry including gold and silver rings and carved jet. Arbeia has one of the largest collections of jet objects in Britain. 
• The remains of a sword with a golden idol of Mars inset into the blade

*This simulator ride is currently closed for essential maintenance. We are very sorry if this causes you any inconvenience.*

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£3.50 per person. 

Red Arrows Experience Terms and Conditions 

All passengers should conform to a minimum height of 1.07m (42").

Only two or more passengers may ride at any one time. 

The Morphis ESP Movie Ride Theatre is a dynamic simulator ride that may include violent motion. You should not enter the capsule and experience the ride if you suffer from any disorder or condition that may be affected by a motion ride such as this. Such conditions are typically, but not limited to:

• Epilepsy 
• Weakness or suffering of back pains
• Weakness or suffering of neck pains
• Pregnancy
• Tendency to suffer from motion sickness
• Tendency to suffer from claustrophobia
• Weak heart or fitted with a pacemaker
• Asthma
• Any other chronic illness

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Visit our galleries and exhibitions

Have a look at all our amazing objects! 

Join in an Event

You can find out about our events programme here. You are very welcome to join in with any of the public events, but if you would like to come along to Mouse Tales story sessions on a Tuesday, please do let us know when you book so that we are expecting what may be a larger number of children than usual.

Visit the Planetarium

We have a variety of shows available in our Planetarium and you can find out about them here. We can fit a maximum of 31 at a time in the Planetarium, including accompanying adults. Most shows cost £67 for a group but we have some shorter ones which cost £37 and discounts for smaller groups or if you would like children to see more than one show.

Store your belongings

We can usually offer you one of our tidy trucks to store coats and bags during your visit. Please note that these are not locked, but you can use our lockers for valuables if you wish. These cost £1 and are located at the front of the museum.

Eat lunch

We will have a public packed lunch space available during the school holidays and you are also very welcome to eat on the front lawn in good weather. We will be able to offer a bookable private packed lunch space for you on some days.  Please ask if you would like this and we will do our best to accommodate you.  

The museum also has a cafe where you can eat or just buy a drink or an ice cream. If your full group will need to buy a meal on site, please discuss your needs with us during the booking process so that our catering team can prepare your food in advance.

Time Odyssey

Time Odyssey is an app-based way of exploring our history galleries and is most suitable for children aged 7 - 11 (it does require a certain reading level to access the game). The adventure lasts around 1.5 - 2 hours and you can combine it with other activities for a full day visit.  You can find out more about it here. We will loan you all the equipment which you need for the activity.  We will send you information for the adults in the group to prepare to lead the children and will give you an induction session when you arrive.

Meet an Object

Get close up with one of our museum objects! A member of our team will meet you with an object you can hold and find out about. You will have a session of around 15 - 20 minutes where you can handle the object and ask questions about it.

Printable Resources and Trails

You can download our printable resources from here.  There will also be different trails you can pick up in the museum on the day of your visit.

Please note that all of these activities are subject to availability on any particular day.

Dive into the steamy swamps of a world millions of years older than the one we know today and discover the weird, wonderful and downright terrifying life forms that lived there.

This is one of the museum’s most popular galleries, bringing the past back to life through rare, internationally famous fossils and a huge array of realistic models.

The Egyptian gallery is really special – not only because of the large number of perfectly preserved artefacts it contains, but for the huge variety of objects on display.

Here you can marvel at enormous stone statues, tiny lucky charms, precious burial goods and entire coffins.

Take a tour through the vast and varied animal kingdom and discover some of the amazing animals who live in our planet’s different habitats, from harsh desert lands and icy polar wastes to temperate forests and lush tropical zones.

This gallery begins on the ground floor and continues on the balcony upstairs. 

It contains many of the museum’s oldest and most-loved exhibits.

This gallery takes you deep into the world of Ancient Greece. 

Created by Professor Brian Shefton, it contains everything from small, intricately carved figurines to a pot that was once big enough to hide inside!

This is one of the best Greek and Etruscan (ancient Italian) collections in the country, thanks to the professor’s keen eye for rare, precious and unusual objects.

Step through the tree trunks of the museum’s forest and enter Hadrian’s Wall country.

Here you can learn why, where and how the wall was built, with the help of models, interactive screens and a huge array of artefacts.

These include wall markers, weapons, coins and all kinds of everyday items Roman soldiers used here in the North East.

Fantastic feather headdresses, shark-toothed knives and the fearsome bushy-moustached armour of a Samurai warrior… this gallery contains an amazing array of ceremonial objects from all around the world.

Begun by military men, missionaries and other travellers in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, this colourful, creative collection is still growing today, thanks to modern-day explorers. 

Look around and see what wonders you can uncover…

Pause and enjoy a dramatic reimagining that shows how seven Roman altars in the Hadrian's Wall gallery were originally brightly coloured.

We do not know how these altars would have looked exactly. The colours and patterns are based on research on stones from across Roman Britain, including traces of paint found by using ultraviolet and x-ray technology.

Paint pigments were made from local, natural materials such as iron ore, chalk and clay, which make earthy colours. Rare colours like blue were only used for special artworks. These pigments could have travelled over 1000 miles from other parts of the Roman Empire to reach Britain, and were used in small amounts.

To imagine what these altars would have looked like, we worked with two partners. WallCAP, a National Lottery funded Hadrian's Wall community archaeology project, hosted by Newcastle University, and NOVAK, a creative studio based in the North East which specialises in video design and projection mapping.

The North East has a fantastic variety of habitats, from remote, wild uplands to lush, grassy lowlands, and from the craggy cliffs and sand dunes of coastal areas to deep, dense woodland.

In this gallery, you can discover all Northumbria’s landscapes and the rich animal and plant life they contain. 

You'll also see John Hancock's taxidermy masterpiece from the Great Exhibition of 1851: "The Struggle with the Quarry."

Butterflies and tribal drums, ancient flints and modern flip-flops, gigantic gems and tiny shrew skulls… this gallery is a marvellous mix of just about everything!

Discover the stories behind some of the museum’s most-loved objects and the collectors who brought them here, and learn more about the way in which these pieces of the past bring long-lost worlds back to life.

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This gallery takes you on a journey across the frozen wastes of the Ice Age to the first Stone Age settlers and on to the skilled craft workers of the Bronze and Iron Ages.

The story of our distant past is told through many wonderful artefacts, including tools, weapons and ancient artwork.

This new display in the Living Planet gallery is all about Eurythenes plasticus, a species of deep sea amphipod first discovered in 2020 by researchers from Newcastle University.

They named it E. plasticus because even though the creature lives at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, it was found with plastic inside its body.

See a holographic display of E. plasticus and learn why plastic in the oceans is a huge problem that we urgently need to solve.

Tucked away in the Fossil Stories gallery, this glittering display is a rainbow-coloured cave of sparkling gems and amazing minerals from all over the world – and beyond!

Learn about the mysteries of the Earth beneath your feet and marvel at crystals of all shades, shapes and sizes. 

Which is your favourite?

After the Romans left Britain in 410 AD, the island was invaded by Germanic tribes, including the Angles and Saxons. Britain split into lots of small, warring kingdoms. 

One of the most successful was Northumbria, which soon became a powerful Christian kingdom and a famous centre of learning.

Here you can see a great selection of precious objects from Northumbria’s glorious past.

Notice

The Rothbury Cross and Nunnykirk Cross will be on loan to the Laing Art Gallery for the Lindisfarne Gospels exhibition (17 September - 3 December 2022).

Charles Algernon Parsons was born in 1854 and first came to Newcastle in 1877 to work at Armstrong’s factory. He built his first steam turbine in 1884 and later developed turbines to power ships.

In 1894 he built the world’s first steam turbine powered ship, Turbinia, which changed the face of maritime history and in 1897 was the fastest ship in the world. At 32 metres long, she now dominates the central hall at Discovery Museum.

The same principle Parsons used to invent his steam turbine is still powering our schools, homes and work places around the world today.

Charles Parsons' daughter Rachel was an engineering trailblazer in her own right - watch this film with historian Henrietta Heald and find out more. 

Opening Times

Tuesday to Friday, 10am - 4pm.

Price

Free entry, donations welcome. 

Donate now

The centrepiece of Segedunum is a 35 metre high viewing tower which gives stunning views of the excavated Fort, the River Tyne and the surrounding area.

Set against this dramatic backdrop, watch 2,000 years of history unfold as an amazing computer generated story chronicles the changes at Wallsend from Roman times and the building of the Fort to the growth of heavy industry on the River Tyne.

An 80 metre section of original remains of Hadrian's Wall, standing eight courses high in places, can be seen to the West of Segedunum.

A reconstructed section of the wall, which gives an impression of how it may have looked 1,800 years ago, stands beside the actual line of the original wall.

Archaeologists working on the remains were surprised to find that the world famous Wall had collapsed, in spectacular fashion, during the Roman period. The collapse was most likely to have been caused by the washing away or the slumping of the ground beneath it.

The section of the wall is unique, as it is the highest surviving section of Hadrian's Wall on view to the public in Tyneside.

Arbeia holds one of the finest collections of Roman finds along Hadrian's Wall and nearly all were discovered in and around the Fort from excavations that have taken place over the years.

Set in Stone delves deeper into the lives of those who lived and worked at the Fort as well as those who helped build it in AD 160.

Who were the soldiers that guarded the entrance to the River Tyne? What supplies were kept on site to aid the rest of the forts along Hadrian's Wall? Who were the civilians that lived in and around the Fort walls?

Highlights include the Regina and Victor tombstones, two of the most important Roman tombstones from Roman Britain.

This permanent display showcases the Shipley’s stunning craft and design collections. These objects range from the special and unique to the everyday and mass-produced.

From teapots to tequilla glasses, lunchboxes to lanterns and chairs to candlesticks, this is a chance to see how design is everywhere in our lives.

The Henry Rothschild Study Centre presents a superb collection of 20th century craft and design amassed by Henry Rothschild between the 1940s and 2006.

The collection includes work by leading ceramicists working in Britain and internationally since the 1950s.

Although wide-ranging, the collection was not intended to be comprehensive or encyclopaedic. It is a testament to Henry Rothschild’s passion for ceramics and his zest and enthusiasm for discovering outstanding works made by highly skilled craftspeople. In his own words, every piece ‘has its own story to tell and gives great pleasure on daily acquaintance’.

The Study Centre is the culmination of a long relationship between Henry Rothschild and the Shipley Art Gallery that began in 1990 with loans and gifts to the gallery. Henry was attracted to the Shipley’s commitment to encouraging public engagement with contemporary craft and design.

Today the Shipley is home to more than 330 works originally collected by Henry. This Study Centre enables us to see Henry Rothschild’s collection en masse for the first time.

The remains at Segedunum represent one of the most completely excavated forts anywhere in the Roman Empire.

The ground plan shows the Fort as it would have been laid out in AD 200. The walls and gateways, granary stores, soldiers' barrack blocks, Commanding Officer's house and headquarters, and more unusually a hospital, can all be seen.

Walk around the remains of the fort or look down on it from our viewing tower. Take the audio tour with Geotourist - download the app on your mobile phone.

Recent excavations have included the preservation and interpretation of the rediscovered Roman bath house foundations (only 5 minutes walk from the reconstructed bath house) and the conservation and display of a further 30 metres of Hadrian’s Wall.

The imposing West Gate is one of the first things you notice walking up to Arbeia. 

This iconic building has been reconstructed using research that was undertaken following excavations at Arbeia.

It stands where it originally existed during the Roman occupation of Britain.

Explore the towers to discover the history of Arbeia from prehistoric times right up to the present day. Discover the model of the Fort and the Roman armoury, and head to the top of the Gate and feel what it was like to be a soldier on duty guarding the entrance to the River Tyne. 

2018 marked 30 years since this stunning Roman reconstruction was recreated. 

Tucked away at the end of the Ancient Egyptian gallery is this small but unmissable hoard of Roman treasures.

It includes all kinds of artefacts – from everyday objects to sacred symbols – that give a fantastic flavour of real life in the Roman Empire.

The 4th century Commanding Officer's house has been reconstructed on its original foundations. 

See how the Commanding Officer lived with his family and entertained guests. Explore the rooms he would sleep and eat in and see the magnificent palisade, summer dining room and fresco paintings that adorn the walls.

Watch a new film on display in this house detailing the history of the fort through digital recreations and interviews with people who've made significant archaeological finds. 

The barrack block is the last of our three Roman reconstructed buildings and was built using traditional Roman techniques from the 3rd century.

Soldiers usually lived eight to an apartment and you can have a glimpse at their living quarters on entering the block.

Some of their weaponry is also displayed including shields, swords and body armour.

See the gardens and touch, smell and see the plants and herbs that were used by the Romans for cooking, medicine and decoration.

The herb garden is in full bloom through spring and summer and we keep it maintained while the Fort is closed to the public.

Thanks to Stanley Smith (UK) Horticultural Trust for contributing funds to support the Arbeia Herb Garden Restoration Project.

By 1911 one third of the population of Tyneside were migrants or children of migrants.

Jobs in coal mining, shipbuilding and heavy engineering meant the North East became a major centre of migration as people travelled far and wide in search of a better way of life.

More recently Tyneside has experienced yet another growth in people moving to the area. Destination Tyneside looks at the insightful stories of people who have made Tyneside their home.

Walk the streets of Newcastle through the years, from Roman times up to the early millennium, stopping by the homes, communities and businesses of the past.

See the Norman castle that give Newcastle its name, take a look at the city's Victorian past, learn more about Newcastle's effort in supporting both World Wars and groove away as the swinging 60s swept through the toon.

One of our favourite galleries for both big and small kids. There's hours of fun to be had in Science Maze.

A huge variety of interactive displays bring science and engineering to life, with favourites including the shadow wall and the air hockey table.

You can also find some of Joseph Swan's famous lightbulbs and a number of working engines and turbines.

The River Tyne is one of Britain's most successful trading rivers and a powerhouse of the nation.

This gallery highlights some of the key industries that scatter the shores of the Tyne from the mouth of the river between Tynemouth and South Shields all the way up past Scotswood and Blaydon.

Displays include full size boats, a ship model wall, a model of the river as it flows from its source, and models of the important routes across the river.

With interactive pulleys, an exploration of the river wildlife and a movable model of the Swing Bridge. 

Tyneside has a rich history of scientific invention and industrial activity which is told in Tyneside Challenge.

Discover some of the most important and interesting inventions made on Tyneside from Stephenson's famous locomotives to the revolutionary Armstrong No.1 Gun and the Mauretania.

The experiences of living and working on Tyneside is brought to life in this gallery.

Listen and watch real stories told through film, see a variety of objects that tell the story and reflect on the achievements of Tyneside folk.

This art gallery space has been specially refurbished using Arts Council England funding to enable an enhanced display of the works of art in the collection and to create a spotlight loan area.

A variety of fascinating critters, including snakes, spiders, and lizards, call the Creature Corner of the museum their home. 

Discover intriguing facts about their diets, natural habitats, and unique behaviours.

See how dramatically South Tyneside has changed over the last two centuries, from the boom in the Victorian times to the decline of major industries along the Tyne and the regeneration of the region recently.

Find the stories of local people and how they lived, worked, played and fought over the years. See a replica early 20th century kitchen, find out more about the bravery of John Simpson Kirkpatrick and see the impact the decline of key industries had on the area.

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Take a journey through South Tyneside from the Bronze Age through to the 20th century in the Changing Faces gallery.

See some of the highlights in the museum collection from the archaeological, natural and historical collections.

Featured in the gallery are William Jobling's gibbet, the HMS Kelly bell, a model of William Wouldhave's lifeboat and a model of St. Hilda.

South Shields Museum is home to a treasure trove of artefacts, stories and more, collected from across South Tyneside and further afield.

Since its opening in February 1876, we have continued to add to our collections with a particular emphasis on illustrating the unique stories of the people of South Tyneside and their place in history, whether it be locally, nationally or internationally.

Treasures highlights some of these unique items and allows visitors the opportunity to get closer to items of the collection not seen on display for a number of years.

Collections Access Points and a touch screen ‘star items’ trail are now available for visitors to use.

Great North Nights is our programme of after-hours events at the museum.

Be part of an evolving range of special evenings designed for people who love enjoying life, going out and taking the path less travelled.

From late socials to meet the scientist events and silent discos, Great North Nights are your opportunity to go against the grain and do something different. Treat yourself to some food and a tasty beverage from our own bar while you explore the museum after hours. It’s the perfect way to unwind and indulge your senses.

Past events:

• Great North Night in collaboration with UNITY Festival ‘24 (Friday 18 October)
  Mind and The Muse (Friday 30 August)
• Out of this World (Friday 26 April 2024)
• Burns Night Ceilidh (Thursday 25 January 2024)
• Festive Folklore and Magical Musings (Friday 8 December 2023)
• Afterlife Afterhours (Friday 20 October 2023)
• Autumn Ceilidh (Friday 22 September 2023)
• Wonder and the Wild (Friday 30 June 2023)
• Insight & Ink (Friday 28 April 2023)
• Herb Hop & Folk (Friday 3 March 2023)
• Christmas Ceilidh (Friday 16 December 2022)
• Being Human Festival (Thursday 10 November 2022)
• Bits & Bobs: The Anatomy of Sex (Wednesday 12 October 2022) 
• Sound Bathing at the Museum (Friday 23 September 2022)
• Sound Bathing at the Museum (Friday 24 June 2022)
• Inked: Tattooing throughout time (Thursday 5 May 2022)
• Wilderness Wellbeing and Bushcraft (Friday 21 January 2022)
• Christmas Ceilidh (Friday 10 December 2021)
• The History of Beer (Friday 24 September 2021)
• WOMAN! An Exploration of Women in Ancient and Contemporary Culture (Friday 10 September 2021)
• World Wide Webs - European Researchers' Night (Friday 27 September 2019)
• BLUE Film Screening (Friday 9 August 2019)
• The Late Shows 2019 (Saturday 18 May 2019)
• Planet 2.0 - European Researchers' Night (Friday 28 September 2018)
• The Late Shows 2018 (Saturday 19 May 2018)
• The Female of the Species is... (Friday 3 August 2018)
• An Artistic Encounter (Wednesday 13 December 2017)
• Juice Festival: Our Time (Saturday 21 October 2017)
• Science Uncovered 2017 (Friday 29 September 2017)
• Wildlife Discotheque (Friday 1 September 2017)
• The Late Shows 2017 (Saturday 20 May 2017)
• Grown-up Sleepover (Saturday 4 March 2017)
• Science Uncovered 2016 (Friday 30 September 2016)

For the first time in 50 years collections from Saltwell Towers in Saltwell Park are brought together for the public to enjoy here at the Shipley Art Gallery. The fascinating display includes glassware and ceramics, taxidermy, bird eggs, insects, minerals, fossils and geology, as well as objects donated from Gateshead residents.

Many of the items on display were on show in the museum at Saltwell Towers in Saltwell Park until the late 1960s, by which time the house had fallen into disrepair and the collections were at risk. In 1974, when Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums took over the running of the Shipley Art Gallery the collections were rescued and stored safely.

The refurbishment of the gallery and the new display were made possible through funding from the DCMS Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund.

More about Saltwell Park Museum >>

Kurt Schwitters’ Merz Barn Wall is one of the UK’s international art treasures and is on permanent display at the Hatton Gallery. As part of the redevelopment of the Hatton, Schwitters’ Merz Barn Wall underwent essential conservation and is now presented alongside new interpretation.

The Merz Barn Wall is part of a construction created by German artist Kurt Schwitters in a Lake District barn in 1947-8. The Elterwater Merz Barn was based on the idea of collage, in which found items are incorporated into an art work. Schwitters applied a rough layer of decorator's plaster and paint over these found objects, giving the three dimensional collage an abstract quality. Asked what it meant, he replied 'all it is, is form and colour, just form and colour'.

The barn was designed as a permanent structure, somewhere Schwitters could exhibit existing work. When he died in January 1948 it was left unfinished. In 1965, after lengthy discussions about the barn's future, the Wall was given to Newcastle University who undertook its removal, restoration and preservation.

Why does the Hatton have it?

In 1958 the Hatton Gallery hosted an exhibition of Schwitters' work. After it ended, the art historian and artist Lawrence Gowing – then Professor of Fine Art at the University – reported to the Arts Council of Great Britain that a 'building in Ambleside, now rapidly disintegrating, which housed a construction by Schwitters, should, he felt, be preserved'. This set in train a complex chain of events that led to the Merz Barn Wall being permanently installed at the Hatton Gallery.

At first the Arts Council tried to interest the Tate Gallery in saving all or part of the barn. After considerable deliberation and investigation into how to move the main wall, the Tate declined the offer in June 1962. Nearly three more years of discussions about the Merz Barn's future followed, involving Abbot Hall in Kendal, Newcastle University (then still part of Durham University), Marlborough Gallery in London and the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.

The artist Richard Hamilton, then teaching in Newcastle at the Fine Art Department, helped persuade the University authorities to get involved. The barn's owner Harry Pierce signed a formal Deed of Gift to the University on 26 March 1965. Hamilton coordinated a detailed survey of the barn before the Wall was moved.

Fred Brookes, an art student who had helped with Hamilton's survey, was the University's nominated representative when the move took place. He also undertook much of the significant conservation and reconstruction work when the Wall was installed in the Hatton in 1966.

Merzbauten (Merz Buildings)

Schwitters worked on four Merzbauten or 'Merz buildings'. The original Merzbau was constructed in his home in Hanover from 1923. Using found objects and personal items, he constructed a series of nooks and themed grottos across eight rooms. Many of the grottos were designed by or dedicated to other artists. This Merzbau - the Cathedral of Erotic Misery - was unfinished when Schwitters left Germany for Norway in 1937. In 1943 it was destroyed by bombing.

Schwitters had often visited Norway, starting work on a second Merz construction in his holiday cottage on the island of Hjertøyain 1932. The relief work on the walls of this structure closely resembles the Elterwater Merz Barn. Parts of it still survive. When he moved to Norway permanently, Schwitters began a thirdMerzbau in a small wooden house behind his main home in Lysaker, near Oslo. Fleeing to Britain in 1940, he also left this construction unfinished. Fire destroyed it in 1951.

In 1947 Schwitters started work on the Elterwater Merz Barn, planning the finished environment for the first time. Schwitters' materials reflected his immediate surroundings: in the Lake District they included natural materials like flowers, branches and stones. Some collaged objects were concealed with plaster and paint. Schwitters intended to cover all four walls with plaster relief, displaying existing works in the nooks. Realizing his health was failing, he concentrated on finishing the one wall displayed here. Schwitters died just months into the Merz Barn's construction. His 'life's work', as he described it, would never be finished.

Schwitters and the Avant-garde

Born in Hanover, Germany in 1887, Kurt Schwitters had a long and varied career, working in visual art, graphic design and poetry. Schwitters was affiliated with several avant-garde movements including Der Sturm, De Stijl and Dada and his work was included in the Nazi 'Degenerate Art' exhibitions of the 1930s. Yet much of his art belongs to his own one-man movement, Merz.

Merzaimed close the gap between art and life, using found and discarded everyday materials to create a 'total work of art' orGesamtkuntswerk. The word Merz comes from a fragment of print used in one of his collaged Merzbild or Merz pictures: part of the word Commerzbank (Commerce Bank), it reflected the ability of collage to create new meanings as things are removed from their original context. Schwitters applied the idea of collage to everything he did, including poetry and musical composition. In the case of his constructions or Merzbauten he applied it to his entire living environment.

This use of collage led to a short-lived association with Dada. Berlin Dada used collage in a highly politicised way, seeking to reflect a broken and fragmented post-World War I society. Schwitters, however, did not believe in diluting the purity of art with politics. He imagined collage as a means of bringing order out of chaos rather than the other way round. He saw his art as 'a site of transcendence that promised the harmony and structure sorely missing in Weimar Germany'.

Read more about Kurt Schwitters here.

Image: Merz Barn Wall, Kurt Schwitters

See a rare Enigma machine, used to code secret messages during WW2. Find out how people from the North-East played a vital role in helping the codebreakers at Bletchley Park.

The small display at Discovery Museum will tell the stories of Tyneside-built ships HMS Bulldog and HMS Petard, which were both involved in the salvaging of material from German U-boats vital for the teams at Bletchley Park to break the German Navy Enigma.

Tommy Brown from North Shields volunteered to assist in the seizing of material from one of the U-boats. The retrieval had an immediate impact on the outcome of the War, not least on Allied fortunes in the Atlantic.

Sentius Tectonicus is an eight and a half feet-high sculpture of a Roman centurion soldier marking the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall.

Artist John O’Rourke was commissioned by North Tyneside Council to create the Centurion which is constructed from weathering steel and measures 2.8 metres high.

The contemporary sculpture links both the site’s Roman heritage and its more recent industrial past.

His name comes from an inscription recovered close to Segedunum which reveals that a centurion named Sentius was supervising the building of a section of Hadrian’s Wall in the vicinity. Tectonicus refers to the sculpture’s design as an architectural man, with the centurion’s torso emerging from a Roman four storey building.

The sculpture contains 575 components and more than three tonnes of Corten steel – the same material used to construct the Angel of the North.

John O’Rourke, Artist, said: “From the outset my concept for this sculpture was to create a soldier on the one hand, but also a spiritual warrior. I also wanted to construct a form which acted as a broader symbolic statement; alluding somehow to the region’s past, present and future. Wallsend’s more recent history revolved around the shipbuilding industry. Making a figure which adopted industrial materials and fabrication methods ensures that the work’s structural and material substance forges those links.”

With thanks to North Tyneside Council; WD Close who provided all of the materials and engineering expertise with trainees and apprentices from AIS Connect helping in its construction; Capita who designed and built the statue’s foundation and plinth.

The Empire & Frontier gallery features an AV projection that shows the fort as it would have been when approaching from the River Tyne – including imagery of an ornate monument thought to exist at the eastern end of Hadrian’s Wall.

With a partial width of Hadrian’s Wall, thatched housing examples and a bust of Emperor Hadrian.

'Billy' - built in Newcastle around 1816 by Robert Stephenson & Company and before the more famous Rocket - is the third oldest surviving locomotive in the world. It worked on the Springwell & Jarrow line, which brought coal to the Tyne from collieries south of Gateshead. Designed by George Stephenson, this was one of the most innovative transport systems of its day.

Early locomotives like Billy were called ‘travelling engines’ because they were mobile versions of the steam engines used at mines. George Stephenson built his first locomotive in 1814 at West Moor, near Killingworth, where he was a colliery engineer. It was similar to engines pioneered at Leeds in 1812 and tried near Newcastle the following year. Other locomotives were being built on Tyneside around this time, and Stephenson used his practical skills to combine the best ideas into his ‘Killingworth travelling engines’. Billy was one of the last of the type to be built.

It was in use for more than 50 years, and many parts were replaced or altered. There are few records, so we do not know how much of the locomotive is original. A section of the line where Billy worked is preserved as the Bowes Railway at Springwell Village near Washington, Tyne and Wear.

The Hatton's Archive & Study Space is open by appointment.

Visitors can view the Hatton Gallery archival poster collection as well as find out more about the history of the gallery.

The space is also bookable to access specific archival materials and objects from the Hatton collection.

A permanent gallery which brings the 300 year history of England's Northern Cavalry regiments to life, through fascinating historic artefacts, and hands-on activities and displays. 

Charge! The Story of England's Northern Cavalry unites the collections of the antecedent regiments of The Light Dragoons and also tells the continuing story of the Northumberland Hussars since becoming the Command & Support squadron of the Queen’s Own Yeomanry. Both regiments, which are formally affiliated to each other, are the only cavalry divisions today which exclusively recruit from the North of England.

The permanent exhibition charts the pivotal moments in the colourful history of these regiments, from the capture of Napoleon’s carriage at the Battle of Waterloo (1815) to more recent reconnaissance missions in Bosnia (1993), Iraq (2004) and Afghanistan (2009), and honours the vital roles played by those born and bred in the north of England.

Visitors can experience the journey many soldiers would have taken, from recruitment and training to front-line duties, and discover original historic accounts based on material from the collection. Using objects and artefacts from the regimental collections, the displays will showcase a selection of military objects and historical artefacts, including a flag captured from the Battle of Waterloo (1815), a shako (helmet) worn at the Charge of the Light Brigade (1854) and a suitcase used for carrying maps at the D-Day landings (1944). 

Discovery Museum’s ever popular full size war-horse sculpture is displayed in full ceremonial uniform and other highlights include a film installation of mounted hussars thundering towards visitors with swords raised in a cloud of smoke, as though on a 19th century battlefield and a digital Drill Sergeant barking orders at any willing new recruits.

Watch this short film examining the 1849 uniform of an officer from the Newcastle and Northumberland Volunteer Cavalry with North East historian Dan Jackson.

The gallery has been made possible thanks to money raised by National Lottery players through the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) who provided a grant of £422,600 towards the redevelopment and an associated programme of activities and events.

RE:Charge

This gallery includes RE:Charge, a temporary exhibition space. The programme for this area will be developed in partnership with local schools and communities including armed services veterans and the families of serving personnel.

Each special exhibition will provide a different perspective on the themes and content of Charge! The Story of the Northern Cavalry.

Visitors can also visit the research space where they will have digital access to the wider regimental collection and  photographs, and other published material. For those who want further access to the archives an appointment to view them can be made with the Assistant Curator (Regimental).

To find out more, or to get involved call (0191) 232 6789. 

See William C Irving's famous depiction of the Blaydon Races, painted in 1903. 

The annual Blaydon Races and Fair was a major event on Tyneside in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The attractions shown in this well-known and much loved painting include a large open carriage pulled by a team of white horses, men demonstrating acrobatics or boxing, and a sweet stall. 

The picture was painted by the Newcastle artist William Irving, who included many local characters in it. Towards the front of the picture, 'Gull Willie of Newburn' is being tricked by the card cheat, the 'Swalwell Cat'. Filled with boisterous activity and fascinating detail, the characters in the world famous Geordie anthem, 'The Blaydon Races' are brought to life in this unforgettable painting.

An outstanding work is the major painting by the Venetian artist Jacopo Robusti Tintoretto (1518-1594). 

On display in the main gallery, Christ Washing the Disciples’ Feet was originally painted for the church of San Marcuolo in Venice, eventually given to St Nicholas’ Cathedral in Newcastle and purchased by Tyne & Wear Museums in 1986.

Artists and designers often use maquettes to test ideas before producing the final form and these are rarely seen by the public. 

This maquette, produced by Gormley during the development of the Angel of the North, is made from plaster and balsa wood.

It was used by Gormley to cast the bronze replica of the Angel that is on display at Gateshead Civic Centre. 

Visit our new community garden in the grounds of the Gallery.

The Shipley Art Gallery, in collaboration with local café and community rooms The Nest, have been working on the Shipley Community Garden where people can meet, learn and grow plants and vegetables in a social environment.

The produce will be used in cookery workshops at The Nest to provide nutrition information, developing a raised awareness of healthy lifestyle choices. 

The garden is open to everyone and provides an ideal opportunity for education, friendship and volunteering in a green space.

Look out for details of special community garden events.

During April you can vote for the Shipley Community Garden to receive a Tesco Bags of Help grant. Cast your vote when you shop at Tesco stores in Gateshead, Rowlands Gill and Whickham. Find out more.

In 1909 local solicitor Joseph Shipley’s large art collection was bequeathed to the public, together with the funding to build a Gallery in which to display it. This new display showcases highlights from Shipley’s collection, celebrating the richness and diversity of his gift to Gateshead.

Highlights of the Shipley Bequest include a group of outstanding sixteenth and seventeenth-century Dutch and Flemish paintings – one of the finest collections in the UK – as well as some important Victorian British paintings.

Since the Shipley Art Gallery opened in 1917 the collection has grown to include a wider range of art practice alongside Shipley’s collection of paintings. Thanks to acquisitions through public and private gifts and donations, the collection now includes sculpture, decorative art – particularly glass, ceramics and metalwork – and a nationally important contemporary craft collection.

Brand new family friendly exhibits. 

See if you can spot our new characters dotted about the fort, the native Britons and the Romans who'd invaded. 

Discover the differences between the indigenous tribes and the ruling Roman troops, and how they both lived. 

Discover what life at the Fort was like for the soldiers who lived there and explore the methods that archaeologists have used to uncover Segedunum's secrets.

The centre of the Roman gallery is modelled on the courtyard of the original Fort's headquarters building. It contains a superbly detailed model of Segedunum and a virtual tour of the Fort so you can explore individual buildings in more detail.

The gallery also has a reconstruction of a cavalry barrack, and displays about the Commanding Officer's house, the granary and the hospital.

More online activities from our venues: 

Segedunum Roman Fort

Marvellous Mondays : Home from Segedunum Collections.

Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort

Crafty Romans: Learning from our collections for schools and home.

Arbeia Family learning activities.

More online activities from our venues: 

Segedunum Roman Fort

Find out about Marvellous Mondays : Home from Segedunum Collections.

South Shields Museum & Art Gallery 

Take part in Take One Treasure Challenge - activities inspired by the museum collection.

Unfortunately at this current time we can not offer our full family programmes in the museums but we have created lots of online learning activities for you to enjoy.

More online activities from our venues: 

Segedunum Roman Fort

Find out about Marvellous Mondays : Home from Segedunum Collections.

South Shields Museum & Art Gallery 

Take part in Take One Treasure Challenge - activities inspired by the museum collection.

Week 14

Henry Perlee Parker (1795-1873) was born in Portsmouth and moved to Newcastle in 1815 after marrying his wife, Amy, and made a living as an artist through teaching drawing, painting window blinds and small paintings on tin. 

By displaying his art in shop windows around Newcastle he started to be commissioned by wealthy landowners and industrialists. 

He was soon able to move to a new home on Pilgrim Street and became one of the North East best known nineteenth century artists. He became known for his coastal scenes where fisherfolk and smugglers were a popular specialism. 

This painting, ‘Old Cullercoats, Spate Gatherers’ shows Cullercoats fish wives, taking the catch from the local fishing boats known as cobles, and temporarily storing it in tidal pools to keep it fresh while they gathered the rest of their catch for the creels. 

For this challenge can you paint a coastal scene? It can be a local beach, current or from the past. Perhaps it's your favourite beach in the North East.

Thank you to Marie Maher for sending us her painting of St Mary's Lighthouse!

Week 13 

The painting by Ian R Macdonald, ‘Friday Night Out’, shows a young woman and a young man sat in a pub, gazing away from each other, possibly bored or in a familiar place. 

The housing estate seen through the window of the pub is Easterside, in Glasgow. Greyish colours and dark outlines add to the gritty realism of the subject. The painting is similar in style to the Kitchen Sink School of the 1950s, who painted ordinary people in scenes of everyday life, an example of social realism. 

Ian Macdonald was living in Middlesbrough at the time he painted this picture. As social spaces start reopening, where are you looking forward to visiting to meet your friends and family? Make a piece of art of this place.

Week 12 

The painting 'Saltwell Tower' by Dennis Barrass shows Saltwell Park in full bloom. Painted in 1961, it shows the East side of the tower, with Pet Corner and what is now the Swedish Garden to the right, and to the left the area called South Park where the Boer War Memorial is. 

At this time Saltwell Park Museum would still have been open showing works donated to the museum by Gateshead residents, such as glassware and ceramics, taxidermy, bird eggs, insects, minerals, fossils, and geology. The tower would not have been in a great state, meaning it was not long before the museum had to close. 

The painting is very stylised, and it makes you wonder whether this was painted from life, or whether Barrass added detail to make it look more interesting. What do you think? 

You may have seen some of the exhibits from the museum in an exhibition at the Shipley before we closed. We hope you will be able to enjoy seeing them again soon.

For this challenge, paint a place you go to, but add detail to imagine how it could look like. For example, what did Ravensworth Castle look like in its heyday?You could create an imaginary place if you want to.

Week 11 

This week’s painting is by John Wallace called 'Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1886'. John Wallace (1841-1905) was born in Ryton, now Gateshead, but County Durham in his time. Wallace left school and joined his father’s business as an apprentice and became a journeyman joiner. By the age of 27, in 1871, he was a successful businessman with a family living in Heaton, Newcastle. However, after a period of recession that affected the building trade, he devoted himself to art, and by 1880 he was exhibiting his art in Newcastle and became a successful professional painter.

This painting is one of a collection of the North East in the TWAM collection by Wallace. Paintings include Prudhoe Castle, Ravensworth and several of the Quayside. The painting, and another named 'John Wallace, ‘Newcastle Upon Tyne from the South West, 1884', show the Quayside about 30 years after the Great Fire of Newcastle and Gateshead, and only ten years after the opening of the Swing Bridge. Many of the buildings are still standing today, though directly to the left of the large brown building in the 1886 painting now stands the Tyne Bridge. For this challenge we would like to see artwork of a place that you visit that has changed over time or since you last visited. You could do a before and after.

Week 10 

The annual Blaydon Races and Fair was a major event on Tyneside in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The attractions shown in this well-known and much loved painting (William Irving, 'The Blaydon Races - A Study from Life', oil on canvas, 1903) include a large open carriage pulled by a team of white horses, men demonstrating acrobatics or boxing, and a sweet stall. 

The picture was painted by the Newcastle artist William Irving, who included many local characters in it. Towards the front of the picture, 'Gull Willie of Newburn' is being tricked by the card cheat, the 'Swalwell Cat'. Filled with boisterous activity and fascinating detail, the characters in the world famous Geordie anthem, 'The Blaydon Races' are brought to life in this unforgettable painting. 

We are inviting you to choose a character from William Irving’s painting, and dress up as the character and take a photo. Or you could recreate the whole painting using objects from around the house! The characters names can be found in the key. 

William Irving, 'The Blaydon Races - A Study from Life', oil on canvas, 1903

William Irving, 'Key to the Blaydon Races', ink (black) and chalk (white) on paper (brown) & board,

Week 9 

The paintings listed below are in the current exhibition at the Shipley ‘Excess and the Everyday: Looking at Still Life from the 17th Century to the Present’. 

Michelangelo di Campidoglio, 'Fruit, Flowers and Birds', oil on canvas, 1635-1665

Romek Arpad, 'Still Life', early 20C

Eva Carter, 'Yellow Marguerites' oil on canvas, 20th century

T. Voss, 'Flowers and Fruit Study', 1813

Still life has proved a popular subject in Western art since the 17th century. Historic still life paintings frequently pictured luxury items of the day in order to celebrate material pleasures such as food and wine, as well as to warn of the temporality of these pleasures and the brevity of human life. Since the late 19th century, artists and makers have generally used simpler still life arrangements as a way of demonstrating skill or for formal experimentation. 

For this challenge create your own still life from objects, flora and food around your house.

Week 8 

This 1910 painting by John Arthur Dees is called The Dog Daisy Field, Low Fell. It shows people picking flowers in the field, whilst behind them are buildings including a church. John Arthur Dees (1875-1959) was an amateur landscape, cattle and portrait painter. He was born in Newcastle and studied at the School of Art winning gold medals in 1895 and 1896. He decided on a career in commerce. He first exhibited at the Bewick club where he gained a reputation for his landscapes. Do you know where the field was in Low Fell and recognise any of the buildings in the background of the painting?

For this challenge we would like you to paint somewhere close to where you live that you like to visit to relax or exercise. It could be somewhere like Dog Daisy Field, or it could be somewhere private.

John Arthur Dees (1876-1959), 'The Dog Daisy Field, Low Fell, oil on canvas 1910

Week 7 

The Shipley holds two nationally important ceramic collections, the Henry Rothschild Collection and the John Christian Collection. Both Henry Rothschild (1913-2009) and John Christian (1942-2016) were two of the most influential people in the collection of contemporary crafts, in particular pottery. 

Rothschild was founder of the Primavera Gallery and the exhibitions he organised launched the careers of some of Britain's most important studio potters, whilst Christian was an expert in Pre-Raphaelite painting but also a renowned collector of ceramics. 

The Shipley started collecting contemporary art and craft in the 1970’s, and has built up one of the best collections outside London, including ceramics, wood, metal, glass, textiles and furniture.

'Still Life 1919'  by Newcastle based artist Byron Eric Dawson shows an array of pots with different sizes, shapes and colours. What pots and vases do you have around your house that you could paint or photograph? Use bright colours and different shapes and sizes.

Byron Eric Dawson (1896 – 1968), 'Still Life 1919', oil on canvas

Week 6 

The work by Sheila Mackie called ‘The Red Handkerchief’ was painted in 1951. It shows a model sitting on a bed in a green dress and wearing brightly coloured headwear. Behind her on the top right is the corner of a painting or poster showing a zebra and an elephant, possibly in a zoo. 

However, the headscarf, or handkerchief, is the main focus of the work, both in the painting with its bright red colour, matched by the models lipstick and in its title. 

Sheila Mackie (1928-2010) was an English artist, illustrator and teacher from Consett, County Durham. She was born in Chester-le-Street, and studied art at King's College in Newcastle, now Newcastle University. She taught art at Consett Grammar School, where she was head of department from 1950, and also spent many months painting and working at Bertram Mills Circus. In later life she lived at Shotley Bridge where she painted in a caravan studio. She illustrated books including Julian Glover's Beowulf, Magnus Magnusson's book on the island of Lindisfarne, and books by naturalist David Bellamy.

For this weeks challenge, create a self-portrait of you in your favourite room wearing your favourite hat or headwear. Make the hat the focus of the work.

Sheila Mackie (1928-2010), 'The Red Handkerchief', oil on canvas, 1951.

Week 5 

The painting by Ralph Hedley called 'Portrait of Stephen Brownlow’ or 'My Neighbour' (1892), shows Newcastle artist Stephen Brownlow mixing colours on his palette in his studio in New Bridge Street, Newcastle. A model stands in the background, wrapped in a blanket. Regarded as one of the major artists of the Cullercoats Artists' Colony, Stephen Brownlow (1828-1896), was known for his landscapes, seascapes, animal studies, and figure scenes. Brownlow was trained as a boot-maker by his father in Byker and took evening classes at Newcastle's Government school of Art. In the 1880's, encouraged by the formation of the Bewick Club, he took a studio at 22 New Bridge St. 

For this challenge we would love to see art created of and by your neighbour or friend, they could be your model. Which room or space in your house is yours or your neighbours creative place? Draw, paint or create art showing it.

Week 4 

'Kitchen Table’ by Ann Gillie was painted 1956 and shows what she had on her kitchen table when she made this artwork as a still life. The painting shows four onions, two lemons and an apple. The onions could have been picked that day from her allotment or garden, and two of them sit in a pan, possibly to be cooked later for a meal. What do you have on your kitchen table right now? Do you grow your own your fruit and vegetables? Do a quick sketch of or make a piece of art using the objects you have on the table.

Week 3 

‘Grandfather’s Tale’ by E.J. Davis shows a family gathering around to hear stories told by their grandfather. 

Painted in the mid nineteenth century, the family look fairly well off, possibly part of the burgeoning middle classes as a result of the industrial revolution. Listening to their father or Grandfather tell stories from his childhood and working life. 

For this challenge, paint your friends, family or neighbour. You can get them to sit for you, or draw from a photo, through your window, from your gardens or backyards; or, if you can, use the opportunity to have a chat over video call. This could be a quick sketch of the person, whilst they are moving around talking to you, or more detailed. Ask them to draw you.

Week 2 

The two paintings, ‘Apple Blossom’ by Roger Ashby and ‘Summer Time’ by Ralph Hedley show the start of Spring and the middle of Summer. We are just at the start of Spring. Create an artwork that shows how you are witnessing the start of Spring from your home or garden.

Week 1 

The painting, 'The Chorus of Birds', by Jan van Kessel, features in the Saltwell Park Museum exhibition at the Shipley. It shows beautifully coloured birds and is a fine example of Jan van Kessel's small paintings on copper. The scene is intended to be decorative, and mixes European and non-European species together.  The picture is one of a pair. Jan van Kessel worked in Antwerp and his paintings were extremely popular.

For the first Shipley art challenge, draw or paint any birds or animals you see out of your window or garden. If you have a pet, you could draw them instead.

2021 marks 21 years since Segedunum Roman Fort & Museum opened to the public. Since then, it has become a key attraction on the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hadrian’s Wall, and an important community and learning resource. More than 941,000 visitors have been welcomed through the doors since opening day on 17 June 2000.

The galleries and external displays tell the rich, dynamic story of Segedunum and its landscape, valued at different times for its strategic importance, the quality of the coal beneath the ground and its world-famous shipyard. 

As part of our 21st birthday celebrations, we asked our staff team to compile their top 21 objects. Do you agree with their choices? What would you choose? Let us know on Twitter and Facebook using the hashtag #SegedunumXXI.

We've a spectrum of free family activities and experiments to try at home inspired by the Colourful Discoveries exhibition for the whole family. 

Find them here.

About - Autumn Art Booklets

The Shipley Art Gallery has teamed up with five local artists from the North East of England to create two activity booklets, designed for families and adults. Inspired by the works from the Shipley collection, they have been designed for you to de-stress this autumn and realise your creative potential.

The Autumn Art booklets feature a range of activities suitable for adults 16+ and families that you can do at home. Activities include calligraphy, textiles, paper cutting, watercolouring, collaging and origami. They have been designed from the following artists:

Deb Cooper 

Marián Hernández Villada 

Keeley (kppapercuts) 

Jayamini De Silva 

Angela Reed 

We hope that you find this resource a useful aid to relaxation and an effective tool to enable you to develop your creativity and try something new. This creative resource has been made possible by funding from the People’s Postcode Lottery. 

Refracted Commentary: An exhibition of new ceramics from Fine Art Students at Newcastle University

Students from Newcastle Fine Art were invited to devise new work in response to the Shipley’s John Christian Collection of Studio Ceramics. The collection is vast and varies from the historical to the contemporary, introducing the students to a range of ceramic techniques and processes. When creating, students took inspiration from form, movement, texture, colour and contextual narrative of the artwork, approaching the collection with exploration and invention. Originally imagined as a physical exhibition at the Shipley itself with the collection pieces alongside, we hope that viewers enjoy this new online iteration and are intrigued by the many different creations that inspire a relationship between the Shipley collection and the students' own identities.

Take a tour here >>

Gateshead U3A’s Art Appreciation Group is volunteer led and supported by Tyne & Wear Archives & Museum’s.

Visitor review August 2019

"May I say a big thank you to the volunteer guides who undertook so much research on the theme of 'Water' in order to provide such a thoughtfully varied and well-informed tour around the stacks, plus looking after us all with care and consideration. The refreshments provided at the end were very much appreciated, too, and gave a few of us an opportunity for further discussion, a real bonus! "

Join our assistant keeper of history Helen Vasey in the Costume stores, for a behind-the-scenes perspective and curator's insight into the intricacies of Victorian underwear. 

Part 1 of our Style Stories series. 

Unfortunately at this current time we can not offer our full family programmes in the museums but we have created lots of online learning activities for you to enjoy.

More online activities from our venues: 

Segedunum Roman Fort

Find out about Marvellous Mondays : Home from Segedunum Collections.

South Shields Museum & Art Gallery 

Take part in Take One Treasure Challenge - activities inspired by the museum collection.

Northern Spirit is a major permanent exhibition celebrating the achievements of artists, manufacturers and makers from the North East of England. Here you can find out more about some of the objects which are on show in the new Northern Spirit display.

Internationally acclaimed art from the Laing Art Gallery’s collection feature in this new display, including work by 19th century painter John Martin, engraver and naturalist Thomas Bewick and the Beilby family of glass enamellers.

Also featuring in the exhibition is an interactive map that allows you to explore different views of Tyneside and some of the surrounding areas. Some of the images on the map are from the Laing’s own collection, some are from archives, some are from photographers and others were contributed through an online competition.

Unusually, when the Laing Art Gallery first opened in 1904, it didn’t have a collection. Alexander Laing, a successful beer, wine and spirit merchant, first offered to build an art gallery in a letter to the Newcastle Corporation in 1900. Although not an art collector himself, Laing was confident that local people would support the Gallery and donate art. The Gallery’s first curator, C. Bernard Stevenson, was known to joke that he might need to resort to exhibiting the wood shavings left by joiners preparing for The Special Inaugural Exhibition of British and Foreign Artists. However, the show was such a success with visitors (from near and far) that the Council decided that a permanent collection, with a similar focus, was the way forward.

Laing’s trust in local people was rewarded and from those early days the Gallery benefitted from a number of important gifts and bequests from prominent industrialists, public figures, art collectors and artists. National galleries and museums continued to lend works, and, three years after opening its doors, the Laing began to purchase art. In 1907, Stevenson bought the Gallery’s first five paintings, one of which, George Clausen’s The Stone Pickers, remains a favourite with visitors today.

Over the last 100 years, the Laing’s curators have continued to develop the collection, and it is now a Designated Collection, recognised as nationally important by Arts Council England. This display includes artworks by both notable and unknown artists (many of whom should be better known). Many of the artworks reference our locality and landscape. Overall, the display reveals a snapshot of the time and place the artworks were made, and who they were made for. At the same time, it gives a glimpse into the intertwined relationships of British and international artists, art movements, media and subject matter.

Experience Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort a new and inspiring way. Enjoy three free audio tours available from GeoTourist.

Tours include:

Welcome Tour
About - An introduction tour to Arbeia South Shields Roman Fort.

The Commanding Officers House Tour
About - Discover all about the home of the Commanding Officer and who he lived with.

The Barrack Block Tour
About- Discover all about where the soldiers based at Arbeia would have lived, cooked and kept their equipment.

What is GeoTourist? 
GeoTourist is your own personal tour guide for the world’s most interesting attractions, landmarks and beyond. Based on your exact location access auto-play guided audio tours right on your smartphone.

Find out more from the GeoTourist website and download the app for free. 

When you have downloaded the app to your smartphone, type in 'Arbeia' it will bring up the 3 tours, there is text and audio available for each tour point.

At the end of the tour just before you leave the gallery space, a red hotspot provides a link to a short survey. Your views are important to us so please tell us what you think. Alternatively, you can find the feedback form by clicking on the link here.

Where did all the Animals Go? by Jane Lee McCracken exhibits printed vinyls of original Biro drawings by 700 children from North East England and international schools, who participated in Jane’s workshops. 

Through the visual art of drawing, one of the oldest forms of communication, these drawings portray some of the world’s most vulnerable species, many of which face extinction. 

Evocative and uninhibited, each portrait depicts an individual being that plays a vital role in its ecosystem, while contemplating what their eyes have seen. 

This exhibition provides an opportunity to form connections with each species, through the creative response of a generation of young people. Also on display are large format prints of Jane’s original Biro drawings Butterfly Lover and Khan.

Founded in 2019, in partnership with international wildlife charity Born Free, and working with dynamic teams of educators and conservationists from England, Kenya, California, Guyana and Malaysia, Jane’s Where did all the Animals Go? project aims to encourage the growth of collective responsibility towards wildlife conservation and welfare while giving children, communities and wildlife both locally and globally, a voice.

Jane’s own practice explores loss generated by human destruction. She creates multi-layered Biro drawings, sculptures, installations and designs commercial products often featuring endangered species. 

Born Free works tirelessly to ensure that all wild animals, whether living in captivity or in the wild, are treated with compassion and respect and are able to live their lives according to their needs... opposing the exploitation of wild animals in captivity and campaigning to Keep Wildlife in the Wild.

About the Winter Wellness Booklets

The Shipley Art Gallery has teamed up with five local artists from the North East of England to create two activity booklets for families and adults. Inspired by works from the Shipley collection, they have been designed for you to de-stress this winter and realise your creative potential.

The Winter Wellness booklets feature a range of activities suitable for adults 16+ and families that you can do at home. Activities include calligraphy, embroidery, watercolouring, drawing, wreath-making, decoration-making and origami. They have been designed from the following artists:

Deb Cooper 

Marián Hernández Villada 

Keeley (kppapercuts) 

Jayamini De Silva 

Angela Reed 

We hope that you find this resource a useful aid to relaxation and an effective tool to enable you to develop your creativity and try something new. This creative resource has been made possible by funding from the People’s Postcode Lottery. 

10.10am (except Sunday)
Cosmix

Have you ever wondered how the astronauts do their job? After watching the Cosmix show it will be absolutely clear to you! But hold tight, it will be a crazy ride. You will find out what a space flight looks like and how to prepare for it. You will jump from a spinning centrifuge straight into a cosmic rocket. And where it will take you? Why, to the International Space Station!
15 minutes. £2.95 per person

10.30am (except Sunday)  
We Are Aliens!

Earth. It’s now a small world. The human race is connected better and faster than ever before but what about elsewhere? We Are Aliens! takes you on an epic ride in the hunt for the evidence of alien life.
25 minutes. £3.75 per person

10.55am (except Sunday)  
Audio Universe: Tour of the Solar System

This sound-based astronomy show gives a visual experience of space whilst also supporting visitors with vision impairment to ‘hear’ the Universe.  Experience the Solar System like never before by traveling on a spacecraft that can turn the objects in space into sound. You'll be transported inside a special spacecraft that takes you to the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) to view the stars in the night sky, before lifting off into space to visit the Earth, Moon, Sun and all the planets of the Solar System.
35 minutes. £3.75 per person

11.30am
We Are Aliens!

12 noon
We Are Aliens!

1pm
We Are Aliens!

1.30pm
Cosmix

2pm
Audio Universe: Tour of the Solar System

3pm
We Are Aliens!

3.30pm (except Saturday and Sunday)  
From Earth to the Universe

The night sky, both beautiful and mysterious, has inspired awe and been the subject of campfire stories, and ancient myths for as long as there have been people. This stunning voyage through space and time conveys, through sparkling sights and sounds, the Universe as revealed to us by science.
30 minutes. £3.75 per person

4pm (except Saturday and Sunday) 
We Are Aliens!

The Mouse House is a multipurpose space for our youngest visitors and their families. Designed to excite curiosity and encourage young children to explore, the Mouse House gallery is full of surprises introducing the museum’s diverse collections. Choose an activity from the walls of the Mouse House to help you explore the rest of the museum.

Young children and their families are also welcome to join free Mouse House activities. Visit the What's On section of our website to find out about our regular Mouse House events.

Please note that our family programme and sessions for reception classes and nursery groups use the Mouse House on Wednesdays and Fridays so it may be closed to the public on those days. Please ask at the Welcome Desk for trails and activities to use around the museum.

We are grateful for in kind support from Best Years Ltd.

Download your digital copy here.

Please note all printed copies have now sold out.

Experience to the Unlocking our Sound Heritage exhibition here.

1. Geordie Pride

26 secs, [TWCMS : 2000.3724.1]

Interviewee:

Everybody who was born within the Tyne, the River Tyne. It’s…every Geordie loves the Tyne, because like I say it’s their life’s blood and the bridges are their backbone and that’s what makes Geordies different from anybody else. Once you’re a Geordie you’re never anything else.

2. Opening of the Tyne Bridge, 1928

1 min 06 secs, [TWCMS : 2001.2820.1]

King George V:

The Queen and I thank you for your loyal and dutiful address and words of cordial welcome.

It’s a great pleasure to us to visit Gateshead on the occasion of opening the new bridge which so nobly spans the River Tyne and forms another great highway between the two counties.

I’m happy to recall a visit made to the ancient town of Gateshead by my dear father when he opened the King Edward the VII bridge.

The civil ceremony which we are today performing forges a fresh link in the chain associating my family with this Tyneside town.

3. Coal Transportation

30 secs, [Darlington Centre for Local Studies U400a]

*Sound of industrial noises*

Narrator:

The noise of coal trucks clanking and clattering, and of tons upon tons of coal pouring down a shoot into the hold of a ship at Seaham Harbour.

4. Miners’ Strike, 1984

1 min 10 secs

TWCMS : 2002.172.1

Interviewer:

A lot of the time during the ’84 strike it was the wives and the women who were doing amazing things.

Interviewee:

Oh, they were brilliant.

Interviewer:

Tell me a bit about that, what went on?

Interviewee:

They went round the different shops and we got packages, what you call your food parcel and what have you. Different people donating, different unions which…the unions were good to us.

A lot of people round the doors were good to wor.

A lot of people on the picket line were coming up, this butcher, I cannit think of him, I wish I could think of his shop.

He come up one day with about fifty food parcels of meat and he says I’ve got to get rid of this meat today, he says I cannit sell it in my butcher shops, can you use that tonight?

There was sausage, black pudding, chops, and I actually got a meal out of four, with a plate of chips, couple of tatties and we got a meal for four of wor out of that little food parcel.

Then the milk man, he used to drop odd pints off milk off for our tea every day, and things like that.

There was, we got a lot of good support.

5. Munitionettes

1 min 02 secs, [TWCMS : 2000.6093.1]

Interviewee:

The First World War broke out and I came home, and I went on munitions.

Interviewer:

Now where was this at?

Interviewee:

Lemington Point.

Interviewer:

Uh huh

Interviewee:

And I filled 9.2 shells in one department…

Interviewer:

Yeah

Interviewee:

…and anti-aircraft in the other department.

Put you from, you know…  

Interviewer:

Yeah 

Interviewee:

…they put you from shop to shop.

And I was there until I was married.

Interviewer:

Uh huh 

Interviewee:

I met my husband on Lemington Point.

He was an inspector, and I met my husband on Lemington Point.

So, er, I only met him in the April and I was married in the August.

Interviewer:

And how old were you then? 

Interviewee:

Twenty, nearly twenty 

Interviewer:

Nearly twenty

6.Sounds of the Seaside

33 secs, [University of Sheffield Action Space Extended MS 426]

*indistinguishable male and female voices*

*Children laughing and shouting*

*Waves on the beach*

Child:

Climb to the top

Right up to the top

Ah, nearly there now

7. The Town Moor Festival, 1992

39 secs, [TWAM 3729]

Lord Mayor of Newcastle:

I would like to thank the showman for the pleasure that they do give to ordinary citizens and also thank the Freemen for their co-operation of making this available, the Town Moor, for this purpose.

I have great pleasure in proclaiming the Town Moor Festival open; thank you.

News Reporter:

The Lord Mayor of Newcastle, Bob Cook, officially opening the Hoppings, Europe’s largest non-permanent fair, here at the Town Moor.

It’s got everything a good funfair ought to have. Numerous so called anti-gravity rides, a ghost train, carousels, the love tunnel, candy floss, beef burgers, you name it, it’s here.

8. F.A.Cup Final, 1951

25 secs, [Darlington Centre for Local Studies U400a]

Commentator:

And Newcastle are attacking again.

Garrett moves forward to challenge Walker, but the winger slips the ball inside to Taylor who is only 25 yards from the goal.

The Blackpool defence have fallen back, there’s a wall of defenders there now in front of the Blackpool goal.

The little inside man is hesitating, he doesn’t seem to know what to do next.

Yes, he’s back-heeled the ball, Milburn is there, he shoots, it’s a goal!

What an amazing goal that is for Newcastle, the ball came off the man’s foot like a rocket.

Narrator:

Yes, it was a goal.

Yet another of those golden goals from the feet of Jackie Milburn, which set Tyneside alight in those bleak post-war years of the late 1940s and 50s.

That particular one was against Blackpool in the first of their FA Cup final victories of the 50s.

9. Great North Run, 1990

1 min 14 secs, [TWAM 3729]

Commentator 1 (Colin Briggs):

Three-two-one, and they’re off. The Great North Run for 1990, the tenth run is underway and they’re off.

The leader at this stage is Frank Bruno, who started off at a sprint, believe me, I can’t see Frank keeping that up for the whole of the race.

Reporter:

The start of the Great North Run as described by Sport FM’s Colin Briggs.

The fine, sunny Sunday afternoon brought the best in everyone and records came tumbling down all over the place, not only in the men’s race but in the wheelchair event as well.

At the finish to see Australia’s Steve Moneghetti cross the line first were two of the sports team, Colin Briggs and John Curns.

Commentator 1:

Is he going to make it? They are so desperately close to a record.

He’s probably got about fifty yards to go, He’s coming round the corner, a great, great shout from the crowd, thirty seconds.

He’s coming across the line. Yes, unofficially we have got a new record for the Great North Run.

Commentator 2 (John Curns):

Douglas Wakiihuri of Kenya who will finish second in this 1990 Great North Run.

The winner was Steve Moneghetti of Australia.

And here comes Douglas Wakiihuri as I peer at the clock, it says one minute...one hour, one minute and 41 seconds, unofficially.

10. Sparkie Williams

28 secs, [NEWHM : 2007.H79]

Sparkie:

My name is Sparkie Williams, 34 Garden Drive, Forest Hall, Forest Hall

They call me pretty Sparkie, I’m just a little bird but I can talk and chatter all the day.

Nursery rhymes…had a little lamb, it’s fat as black as soot and everywhere that Mary went his sooty fatty, patty pat pat.

Take part in our Sensory Journeys digital story-telling sessions, where you create the sights, sounds, smells, touch, and tastes to bring the stories to life. Or you can just sit back, relax, and listen! There are text versions for each story if you want to read along. Simple ideas are given for using materials easily found or made at home, making it easy to take part. Explore the Sensory Journeys website and discover fascinating objects and art from our collections that support the stories and there are lots of fun sensory and creative activities to take part in.

Stories include: Davy's First Shift: the tale of a 12-year-old boy working down a coal mine for the very first time, To Catch a Smuggler: the story of three children who discover a smugglers cave while at a family picnic on Marsden Bay, and Little Bear and the Treasure Box: a love story about the famous Regina Tombstone at Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort.  

Find out more and take part.

Enjoy six new interactive displays at the Great North Museum: Hancock, in the following galleries:

• Hadrian's Wall
• Ice Age to Iron Age
• Fossil Stories
• Natural Northumbria
• Ancient Egypt
• Ancient Greeks

Spin the wheel and you'll be given a series of challenges to complete. 

It's a great way for younger children (aged 6-11) to explore the museum, digging deeper and learning more about the objects on display.

Wall in Motion will bring to life to Hadrian’s Wall and its legacy on Tyneside, illuminating what we know about Hadrian’s Wall in these less well-known urban areas. 

By animating the Hadrian's Wall model in the Great North Museum: Hancock through spectacular and immersive digital projection, and stunning drone footage of the urban landscape on a monumental scale, this site-specific work celebrates the movement and motion of people, objects and stories associated with this grand frontier. 

The most famous visible remains of the Wall are preserved in the remote upland landscape of Northumberland. The eastern 27 miles of the Wall, from urban Tyneside to the river North Tyne, are largely invisible, its remains mostly buried beneath modern highways and buildings. 

Yet there are important archaeological remains preserved beneath the ground, and Hadrian's Wall has shaped the townscape of modern Tyneside. 

Many of the most important archaeological discoveries about the Wall in recent times have been made in excavations in urban Tyneside, and the area contains three of the major forts of Hadrian’s Wall – Wallsend (Segedunum), Newcastle (Pons Aelius) and Benwell (Condercum), as well as South Shields (Arbeia), the Roman fort and supply-base at the mouth of the Tyne.

NOVAK is a creative studio based in Newcastle, and has presented work throughout the world and at some of the most highly regarded arts festivals, including the UK’s largest light festival, Lumiere (London, Durham and Derry-Londonderry), Brighton Festival and the internationally renowned Singapore Night Festival. Their work has been commissioned by the likes of Bloomberg, Google, MTV and has featured alongside many celebrated musicians including Disclosure, Calvin Harris and Jean-Michel Jarre.

Throughout the museum you can hear sound pieces created by composition students at Newcastle University, as part of their Undergraduate Music Degree coursework. The students were commissioned to make creative music and sound responses to different objects within the collections of the Great North Museum: Hancock.  

Donations welcome (free entry).

Drop in, no booking required.

This new display introduces two new Jewish heritage partnerships projects in the North East, the Lahav Jewish Heritage Project and Unlocking North East Jewish Heritage.

Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums are working with members of the Jewish community and Newcastle Libraries to preserve and celebrate the rich history of the Jewish community, and increase access to records and archival collections. 

Image: still from film depicting Siyyum L'Sefer Torah - the rededication of the Czech Torah Scroll at Newcastle Reform Synagogue.

This new display introduces two new Jewish heritage partnerships projects in the North East, the Lahav Jewish Heritage Project and Unlocking North East Jewish Heritage.

Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums are working with members of the Jewish community and Newcastle Libraries to preserve and celebrate the rich history of the Jewish community, and increase access to records and archival collections. 

Shalom! tells the story of Ron and Kath Lahav and the early history of the Jewish community in the west end of Newcastle. The display includes a selection of Jewish items from the museum and archive collections and a short film of the Siyuum event held at the Newcastle Reform Synagogue in April 2019. 

Image: still from film depicting Siyyum L'Sefer Torah - the rededication of the Czech Torah Scroll at Newcastle Reform Synagogue.

Step into the interactive Story Inspiration Station at the Great North Museum: Hancock's Living Planet Gallery. Pull the lever to reveal fascinating objects from our collection of over 600,000. We want to know more about these objects, their journey to the museum and the people who made them. They hold stories that can tell us about the world we live in. To help with this we want to hear YOUR stories and discover what these objects mean to you. 

We will use your unique perspective to share the wonders of our collections with all by adding your information to our records, making them easier to search.

Dive into stories written by fellow visitors and create your own webpage to share online. Together, let's ignite curiosity and continue the story.

Story Inspiration Station is a collaboration between Open Lab at Newcastle University, Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, and the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations. It was funded by a Museums Association Digital Innovation and Engagement grant.

We’re inviting you to get on your bike and visit museums across Tyneside. Cycling can help you get fit and stay healthy. Visiting a museum can also help improve your mental health and wellbeing. 

We’ve connected three museums in Tyneside to 11 miles of public cycleway and two easy rides for beginners or families with young children. Using existing cycle routes, including the Hadrian’s Cycleway Route 72, Byker Link and new inner-city cycle lanes in Newcastle City Centre, we’ve created a special Museum 2 Museum cycle route map to guide you.

The routes are mostly traffic-free on flat terrain with short sections of on-road cycle lanes and some short steep sections. Ideal for all cyclists and suitable for all cycle types, we would recommend all tyres apart from full slick or racing bike tyres.

Please click here to find out more about the Museum 2 Museum: Tyneside Cycle Routes.

Disclaimer

Outdoor activities involve a degree of risk. Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums accepts no responsibility for any accident or injury resulting from following these routes. Cycling routes change over time. Weather conditions may also affect path surfaces. Please use your own judgement when using the routes based upon the weather and the ability, experience and confidence levels of those in your group.

The beautiful and functional everyday objects on display in The Pursuit of Beauty chart the changing tastes of Britain between 1860 and 1960. Although individual fashions changed, capturing beauty remained a central ethos.

The period’s unique backdrop of industrialisation, warfare and economic instability led to a divide in ideology amongst decorative arts designers. Whilst some embraced the opportunity to utilise new materials and technologies to make their wares available to a wider audience, others rejected these changes, choosing instead to create unique handcrafted pieces.

The display features works by some of the most prominent designers of the period including Christopher Dresser, William De Morgan, Clarice Cliff and Eric Ravilious. Explore a selection of pieces from the Laing Art Gallery’s decorative arts collections, from the nature inspired designs of the Arts and Crafts movement, through the vibrant colours and geometric patterns of the Art Deco movement, to the striking simplicity of handcrafted studio pottery.

Chris Killip: The Last Ships

Chris Killip’s photographs document the lives of working people and their resilience of spirit while at the same time recording the steady decline of industrial Britain. This exhibition, drawing from his archive, includes previously unpublished photographs of shipbuilding on Tyneside. Initially coming to the North East in 1975 as the Northern Arts Photography Fellow (a two-year photography project jointly financed by Northern Arts and Northern Gas), Chris Killip lived and worked on Tyneside until 1991 when he was recruited by Harvard University to teach photography in its Visual Studies Program. 

Killip was fascinated by the way huge ships and industrial cranes provided a backdrop to everyday life in Wallsend and South Shields. The ship Tyne Pride, which he photographed in 1975, was the biggest ship ever built on the river, but also one of the last. "Even then I had a sense that all this was not going to last," he says, "though I had no idea how soon it would all be gone." In an early photograph, Tyne Pride looms over children playing in the street. Only two years later, another photograph shows the same street demolished, dramatic evidence of the industry’s decline. Other photographs capture the energy of the mid-1970s, with ships under construction and shipyard workers streaming out of the gates at the end of shift. Chris Killip has given this set of exhibition prints to the Laing in honour of the shipyard workers of Tyneside.

Photo: Chris Killip, Shipyard workers looking at the Everett F Wells, Wallsend.  

The tanker Everett F Wells was built by Swan Hunter Shipbuilders Ltd at Wallsend, and could carry cargo of 250,000 tonnes. It was completed in August 1977, and was the last super-tanker built on the Tyne.

If you would like to know more about The Last Ships exhibition, watch our 3-minute Q&A video with Chris Killip below:

The gallery has a number of tactile artworks available for visitors:

• A tactile reinterpretation of the Gerrard Robinson woodcarving is available in the Northern Spirit gallery.
• A tactile interactive explaining the different textures within a portrait of Thomas Bewick.
• A tactile reproduction of the bust of the Gallery’s founder Alexander Laing.
• A bronze and marble tactile piece which explains the Frosterley Marble tiles in the Marble Hall.
• 'The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah', by the artist John Martin, is a painting which is brought to life in a sound and light display in Northern Spirit gallery.

Large print labels can be provided on request for all temporary exhibitions and most of the permanent displays.

Our exhibitions and displays are intended to be accessible for as wide a range of visitors as possible. Labels are written in clear print. Light levels are usually good, but some areas may have low light levels in order to avoid damage to the objects on display.

More information about accessibility can be found here.

We’re committed to preserving the wild areas within our community. When finished, the Woodland Walk will attract wildlife and improve the site’s natural eco system, creating a nature conservation area that can be enjoyed freely by all.

When finished, our Woodland Walk will feature: a wildlife pond, sensory garden, art trail and outdoor shed.

Follow us on Facebook to keep updated with Woodland Walk developments! 

This workshop gives children the opportunity to explore the theme of coal mining through paintings and objects from the museum collection.  Through a range of sensory activities that support mental wellbeing. Children will gain skills in observation, develop their creative vocabulary through discussion and poetry writing, learn slow-looking techniques and develop their artistic abilities. The sensory aspects of this workshop makes it especially good for groups with SEND or PMLD learners and can be tailored for individual needs.

This workshop is suitable for KS1, KS2 and SEND

Download session plan

Download Hazard ID

In 2022, we created the exhibition Building the Wall as part of the award-winning Hadrian's Wall 1900 Festival, a year-long event celebrating 1900 years since the building of the Wall.

If you missed the exhibition, you now have another chance to see some of it as we've taken the information panels from the original exhibition and put them on display in Gallery 3. 

This compact exhibition explores who built Hadrian’s Wall and how, and considers the substantial practical and logistical challenges involved. It looks at questions such as: where did they get the stone? What tools did they use? How did they transport everything? How did they deal with the rivers and streams that needed to be crossed?

Many details of the design of the Wall varied over its great length. This exhibition mainly looks at the section of Wall between Wallsend and the original end of the Wall in Newcastle. It includes ground-breaking new research from the excavation of the section of Wall just outside the fort at Wallsend, including how water was supplied to the fort and bath-house, and the original appearance of the fort’s west gate. 

Watch: Keeper of Archaeology Alex Croom talks about the exhibition

A rare spirit preserved coelacanth specimen (pronounced SEEL-uh-kanth), over 1 m long and one of the Great North Museum: Hancock’s natural history “superstars" has just gone on permanent display in the museum. The coelacanth is a very rare specimen and thought to have become extinct 60 million years ago. The species was only known in the fossil record until a live specimen was caught and later identified in 1938. These specimens are even more rare in UK collections. Our Coelacanth specimen was given to the museum in 1973. Perhaps as few as 6 complete specimens exist nationally and our specimen was the only one in the country not on permanent display. It's just returned from loan to the National Maritime Museum, Cornwall and Chatham Historic Dockyard - the first time a coelacanth has been loaned, transported and temporarily displayed in the UK, Europe and possibly the world. Thanks to a generous donation, and the hard work of the museum team, this remarkable specimen is now on permanent display. It can be found in the Fossil Stories gallery, near the T-rex, on the ground floor of the museum. 

Mythquest is a free augmented reality (AR) mobile quest for families visiting the Great North Museum: Hancock in Newcastle. 

Download the Mythquest app before or during your visit and experience an interactive journey as you explore the museum and learn about myths from around the world.

The adventure is led by Mary Hancock, a founder of the Hancock Museum, who invites you to join her on a mission to free six rare mythical creatures trapped in prison spells.

Guided by the app, you will follow clues to the location of enchanted amulets hidden throughout the museum. Once found, you can use the amulets to release the creatures and unlock your mythical AR rewards. After your visit, these rewards will remain in your app so you can continue enjoying them at home. To take part, you will need to visit the museum.

Key features: 

• Learn about myths from around the world on your visit to the Great North Museum: Hancock!
• Get ready for your adventure! Start by creating a unique player profile using face filters and decorations. 
• Find enchanted amulets hidden throughout the museum by following location clues provided through the app. 
• Once you think you have found the right spot, hit the scan button to detect the exact location of the amulet. 
• If you are in the correct location, the amulet will appear directly on your phone! 
• Rub away the dirt to reveal your enchanted amulet and save it to your collection to unlock your mythical AR reward. 
• To meet your reward, hit ‘Enable AR’, and your virtual reward will appear in front of you as if it’s in the real world. 
• Celebrate your achievement by taking pictures alongside your mythical rewards in the museum and at home. 
• Create dramatic scenes and share your unbelievable photos with family and friends.

Explore the different jobs connected to the railways in this interactive workshop for EYS.  

In this workshop, children will explore our museum to hunt for different characters who work on the railway before taking on the role of some of these people and passengers who travelled on the railway in an interactive story-telling session. They will then work in groups to decorate a train and its carriages and create their own railway worker or passenger to ride on this train. Before finishing off with an interactive game to understand the role of a signalman and some of the signals used.

Session plan with curriculum links:

Workshop Curriculum Links

Download Hazard ID

Visit the space in the museum during museum opening hours.

Treat yourself to a delightful afternoon tea experience at the stunning Laing Art Gallery. Enjoy a selection of delectable sandwiches, freshly baked scones, and exquisite pastries, all while surrounded by beautiful art. 

Traditional
Selection of sandwiches:

• Egg & Cress
• Tuna Mayo & Cucumber
• Turkey, Stuffing & Cranberry

A selection of cakes, and sweet treats.

Plain and fruit scones with butter, clotted cream & preserves.

Your choice of tea.

Vegan

Savoury:

• Seeded bagel with cream cheese, cucumber and chive
• Tortilla wrap with sliced cheese, tomato, roasted red pepper and salad
• Vegan sausage roll
• Red pepper houmous with warm pitta bread
• Selection of mini quiches

A selection of sweet treats, including: Bakewell slice, caramel biscuit loaf cake, and a selection of mini tarts.

Your choice of tea.

If you would like to make a booking for 10+ people please contact our venue hire team by email: 

venuehire@twmuseums.org.uk or telephone on 0191 277 2303.  The office is open Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm.