Museum of Somerset facts for kids
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| Location | Taunton, Somerset |
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The Museum of Somerset is a fantastic place to discover history! It's found inside the ancient Taunton Castle in Taunton, Somerset, England. This museum is looked after by the South West Heritage Trust, a special charity. It displays many amazing items first gathered by the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society, who own the castle itself.
Before 2008, the museum was known as the Somerset County Museum. With help from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the museum got a big upgrade. It reopened its doors in September 2011, ready for visitors.
You can see many cool things here. These include the Frome Hoard of Roman coins and the beautiful Low Ham Roman Mosaic. There's also the South Cadbury shield from the Bronze Age. Plus, you'll find lots of other objects that tell the story of Somerset. The museum also has items collected by Mary Harfield, an archaeologist who taught herself.
Contents
Discovering the Museum's Past
How the Museum Started
In 1874, the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society bought Taunton Castle. Between 1899 and 1900, the castle's Great Hall was fixed up. It became the main space for their museum. A library was added in 1908-1909 for the society's growing book collection. Today, the society lets Somerset County Council use the castle for the Museum of Somerset. Many of the items you see in the museum were first collected by this society.
A Royal Visit to Taunton Castle
A very special visitor came to the museum on May 8, 1987. Queen Elizabeth II visited, along with the Duke of Edinburgh. It was an exciting day for the museum!
Modern Upgrades and Reopening
In October 2007, plans were made for a big £6.5 million improvement project. This was for both the museum and the castle. The museum closed on April 18, 2008, for these important renovations. It reopened as the Museum of Somerset on September 29, 2011. A key feature of the new museum is the "Tree of Somerset." This is a large sculpture carved from oak wood from the Quantock Hills. It shows important events from Somerset's long history.
What You Can See: Amazing Exhibits
Exploring Diverse Collections
The museum has many different collections for you to explore. You can see old toys and dolls, interesting sculptures, and items about natural history. There are also ancient fossils, beautiful silver pieces, and pieces of old pottery. A big part of the museum is its collection of archaeological finds. This includes the amazing mosaic found at the Low Ham Roman Villa. You can also visit the Somerset Military Museum inside. Here, you can learn about the Somerset Light Infantry and their adventures around the world.
The Incredible Frome Hoard
One of the most exciting exhibits is the Frome Hoard. This is a huge collection of 52,503 Roman coins! It was discovered in April 2010 by a metal detector user named Dave Crisp. He found them near the town of Frome. The coins were all inside a ceramic pot, about 45 centimeters (18 inches) wide. These coins date from AD 253 to 305. Most of them are made from silver that was mixed with other metals, or from bronze.
The Frome Hoard is one of the largest coin hoards ever found in Britain. It's also very important because it has the biggest group of coins from Carausius. He was a Roman Emperor who ruled Britain independently from 286 to 293. He was also the first Roman emperor to make coins in Britain. The Museum of Somerset bought the hoard in 2011. They received a grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund to help them do this.
