Leeds City Museum facts for kids
Leeds City Museum
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| Established | 1819; reopened 13 September 2008 |
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| Location | Millennium Square, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England |
| Type | Collection (museum), Heritage centre |
| Public transit access | Leeds railway station, Leeds City bus station |
The Leeds City Museum is a fun and educational place to visit in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It first opened way back in 1819, but it moved to a new, bigger home in 2008. This new home is in the old Mechanics' Institute building on Millennium Square. It's one of nine museums and galleries managed by Leeds Museums & Galleries.
The best part? It's completely free to enter! You can explore many different displays and also see special exhibitions that change over time.
Contents
History of the Museum
The museum started in 1819, created by a group called the Leeds Philosophical and Literary Society. It opened its doors to everyone in 1821. Later, in 1921, the city council took over running the museum.
In 1941, during World War II, the museum building and many of its valuable items were badly damaged by bombs. Because of this, the museum had to close in 1965. Some of the biggest and most popular exhibits, like the famous Leeds Tiger and a giant moose skeleton, were moved to a few rooms in the city library in 1966.
By 1999, the museum's collections were put into storage. However, people could still arrange to see items if they made an appointment. In 2001, Leeds City Council asked for money from the National Lottery to build a new museum. They received a huge amount of £19.5 million in 2004!
With this money, the old Mechanics' Institute building was completely redesigned. It finally reopened as the new Leeds City Museum in 2008, ready for everyone to enjoy.
What You Can See: The Exhibits
The museum has many different exhibits, mostly showing the history of Leeds and its people. In the main hall, there's a giant map of Leeds printed right on the floor! You can also see a small model of the old Quarry Hill flats.
Life on Earth Gallery
This gallery is all about natural history, which means it covers everything from space rocks (meteorites) to ancient dinosaur poop (coprolite)! In 2019, a huge skeleton of a Long-finned Pilot Whale was hung from the ceiling just outside this gallery.
You'll also see many old taxidermy-mounts here. Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body so it looks alive. Some famous ones include:
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The Leeds polar bear
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The Armley Hippo
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The Leeds Irish Elk
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The Salford tiger, created in 1914
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The Leeds Tiger
One of the most famous exhibits is a large, preserved Bengal tiger. This tiger came to Leeds in 1862. It was shot by Colonel Charles Reid in India in 1860.
When it first came to London for an exhibition in 1862, it was just a skin. Later, it was turned into a taxidermy mount. The museum received the tiger as a gift, and it has been on display for over 150 years!
There are many stories about the Leeds Tiger. Some people say it was very dangerous. The Yorkshire Evening Post once wrote that it "sends a shiver down the spines of visitors." However, the tiger's pelt (skin) might actually be dangerous now because people in the Victorian era used arsenic to preserve it.
The museum's curator, Adrian Norris, said in 1979 that the tiger was always very popular. He mentioned that they couldn't remove or cover it because people would complain, with some even traveling far just to see it!
Ancient Worlds Gallery
In this gallery, you can discover amazing archaeological items from Leeds and other parts of the world.
- Roman floor mosaic: This beautiful artwork from around 250 AD shows a she-wolf with Romulus and Remus, who are famous figures from Roman myths. It was found in Aldborough, North Yorkshire.
- Ancient Greek tomb doors: These marble doors from about 250 BCE have cool carvings called bas relief.
- The Leeds Mummy: This 3000-year-old mummy survived the bombing raids in 1941, even though two other mummies were destroyed. You can see Nesyamun's mummy and a really cool model of what his face might have looked like.
- Iron copy of Ancient Greek head of Aphrodite: This is a copy of a famous head from the 1st century BCE. The original was found in Turkey. The eyes of the original were once decorated with precious stones!
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Roman floor mosaic
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Ancient Greek tomb door
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A model showing what Nesyamun's face might have looked like
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A copy of the Satala Aphrodite head
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Another view of the Satala Aphrodite copy
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World View Gallery
Since 2014, this gallery has featured an exhibition called 'Voices of Asia'. It celebrates the amazing sights, sounds, and culture of Asian communities in Leeds and around the world. The part of the display about different faiths changes regularly. For example, since 2017, it has focused on Buddhism.
Leeds Museums & Galleries has a huge collection of items from all over the world. The 'Voices of Asia' display shows just a small part of these. The museum also has important collections from Africa, especially sculptures, masks, and textiles. Many of these are kept at the Leeds Discovery Centre, which also holds items like North American beadwork and traditional arts from Oceania.
Leeds Story Gallery
This gallery tells the story of Leeds from its very early days (prehistory) right up to modern times. One interesting item you can see is the Malham Pipe. It was first thought to be an Iron Age flute made from bone, but now experts believe it's from the early medieval period. You can also see the West Yorkshire Hoard, which shows what medieval Leeds was like.
Special Exhibitions
On the third floor, there's a special area for changing exhibitions. This means there's always something new to see! One past exhibition was called 'Beavers to Weavers', which looked at things created by different creatures.
Collectors Cabinet
This area shows different collections that rotate, focusing on the people who collected the objects.
- The Circe bronze by Alfred Drury: This beautiful bronze statue was made by Alfred Drury in 1894. It was moved to Park Square in the 1950s when Victorian art wasn't as popular. It got damaged by the weather but has been fixed up recently. Alfred Drury also created the eight lovely bronze lampholder girls in Leeds City Square, and the bronze statue of Joseph Priestley nearby.
