Royal Cornwall Museum facts for kids
 |
|
| Established | 1818 |
|---|---|
| Location | Truro, Cornwall |
The Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro holds an extensive mineral collection rooted in Cornwall's mining and engineering heritage. The county's artistic heritage is reflected in the museum's art collection. Through the Courtney Library the museum also provides a collection of rare books and manuscripts to help with education, research and the discovery of Cornish life and culture.
The museum also highlights Cornwall's relationship with the wider world through one of the most significant British emigrations of the 19th century. The museum hosts a permanent exhibition of ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman objects, supported by the British Museum.
The museum is part of the Royal Institution of Cornwall (RIC), a learned society and registered charity.
The Courtney Library
The Courtney Library and Archive holds books, periodicals, archive material and ephemera relating to Cornwall and the South West of England.
Museum building
The Grade II building which has housed the RIC since 1919 was built in 1845 as the Truro Savings Bank and subsequently became Henderson's Mining School. In 1986/7 the RIC acquired the adjacent Truro Baptist Chapel, built in 1848. Together these granite-fronted buildings (linked with a new foyer and shop in 1998) are a distinctive presence in the centre of the historic city of Truro; both buildings were designed by the local architect Philip Sambell, who was deaf and without speech.
Rail access
The nearest railway station is Truro railway station.
