Shetland Museum

Scottish museum

The Shetland Museum

The Shetland Museum and Archives is a museum in Lerwick, Shetland, Scotland. The new Shetland Museum at Hay's Dock was officially opened on 31 May 2007 by Queen Sonja of Norway and the Duke & Duchess of Rothesay (Charles & Camilla).

## Previous building

[edit]

On 29 June 1966 a library and museum building was opened on Lower Hillhead and King Harald Street, Lerwick by the Lord Lieutenant R. H. W. Bruce. The building was built in 1966 by Zetland County Council and was shared with Shetland Library.[1]

## New building

[edit]

The new building, which cost in the region of £11.6 million, was part-funded by a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £4.9 million, and replaced the much smaller buildings in Lerwick. The lead consultant for the development was the Building Design Partnership, and the main contractor D.I.T.T. Construction Ltd. started work on the building in 2004. The display designs in the building were created by GBDM of Dundee in collaboration with museum staff. The completed building is a massive step forward for the Shetland Museum with five times the space for exhibits, not including the three-storey boat hall. The building also contains a state-of-the-art archive-storage facility and search room – again with increased space and much better facilities. There is also a 120-seat lecture hall, temporary display areas, and a cafe, which serves, as much as possible, local produce.

In April 2008, the Museum and Archives was nominated for the Art Prize Fund for museums & galleries.[2] The building won the "Commercial & Public Access" award and the overall "Gold Award" in the 2008 Wood Awards.[3]

## Galleries

[edit]

Fair Isle knitwear in the museum

The display galleries are split between two floors. The ground floor, with approximately 500 m2 of gallery space, concentrates on the history of Shetland up until 1800, from environmental, geological, and geographical factors, early settlers in the islands, through early agriculture, fishing, early boats, and the rich folklore of Shetland. The 360 m2 of first-floor gallery space brings the story of Shetland up to date with exhibits from the last 200 years. These detail the changes in culture, politics, population, and industry, including the development of the knitwear industry and Shetland's association with the sea through fishing, whaling, wartime service, and merchant shipping.

The exhibits in the museum range from items of great historical importance, to items, which although not old, are of great significance to Shetland. From items which tell a story on their own, to items which help form part of a larger picture, and from items as delicate as lace shawls, to complete boats. The Shetland Archives contains records from the 15th to the 21st century, and a big library of local literature.

## Hay's Dock

[edit]

Boats at the Shetland Museum

The building sits on the shore of the biggest exhibit, the Category B listed Hay's Dock, which was built in 1815 by the company Hay & Ogilvy. As part of the project the dock area has seen major refurbishment works including the restoration of the pier house, and dredging of the dock itself, which will be home to the museum's floating exhibits.

## Crofthouse

[edit]

The Shetland Crofthouse Museum at Dunrossness is a traditional 19th-century thatched crofthouse.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Libraries" (PDF).
2. ^ "Shetland Museum and Archives". STV. 19 January 2009. Retrieved 18 August 2009. [dead link]
3. ^ "New Shetland Museum & Archives". The Wood Awards. Retrieved 23 April 2012.

## Sources

[edit]

* This article is based on http://shetlopedia.com/Shetland_Museum a GFDL wiki.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Shetland Museum.

* Official website
* Up-Helly-Aa: Insideoot, a book by Vertigo

60°9′31″N 1°8′52″W﻿ / ﻿60.15861°N 1.14778°W﻿ / 60.15861; -1.14778

* v
* t
* e

Museums and art galleries of Scotland

National Museums Scotland|

* National Museum of Scotland
* National Museum of Flight
* National Museum of Rural Life
* National Museums Collection Centre
* National War Museum

National Galleries Scotland|

* Modern Two
* Royal Scottish Academy Building
* Scottish National Gallery
* Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
* Scottish National Portrait Gallery

Art galleries and collections|

* Aberdeen Art Gallery
* Broughton Gallery
* Burrell Collection
* City Art Centre
* Dick Institute
* Dundee Contemporary Arts
* Fruitmarket Gallery
* Gallery of Modern Art
* Georgian House
* Gracefield Arts Centre
* Groam House Museum
* Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery
* Inverness Museum and Art Gallery
* Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
* Kirkcaldy Galleries
* Meffan Institute
* McLean Museum
* McLellan Galleries
* McManus Galleries
* Meigle Sculptured Stone Museum
* Montrose Museum
* Perth Art Gallery
* Pier Arts Centre
* Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum
* Queen's Gallery
* Talbot Rice Gallery
* Tramway
* V&A Dundee

History|

* Alloa Tower
* Broughty Castle Museum
* David Livingstone Centre
* Museum of Childhood
* Provand's Lordship
* Surgeons' Hall
* Writers' Museum

Local history|

* Aberdeenshire Farming Museum
* Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum
* Angus Folk Museum
* Biggar Museum Trust
* Campbeltown Heritage Centre
* Clydebank Museum
* Dumfries Museum
* Fife Folk Museum
* Gairloch Museum
* Gladstone's Land
* Glenesk Folk Museum
* Highland Folk Museum
* Highland Museum of Childhood
* Inveraray Jail
* John Knox House
* King's Museum
* Meffan Institute
* Montrose Museum
* Museum of Ayrshire Country Life and Costume
* Museum of Edinburgh
* Museum of the University of St Andrews
* New Lanark
* North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre
* Old Haa Museum
* The Orkney Museum
* People's Palace
* People's Story Museum
* Perth Museum
* Pier House Museum
* Provost Skene's House
* Scalloway Museum
* Scotland Street School Museum
* Shetland Museum
* Signal Tower Museum
* Skye Museum of Island Life
* St Andrews Museum
* Stewartry Museum
* Stonehaven Tolbooth
* Stromness Museum
* Tain & District Museum
* Tangwick Haa Museum
* The Tolbooth, Aberdeen

Maritime|

* Aberdeen Maritime Museum
* Böd of Gremista
* Discovery Point
* HMS Unicorn
* HMY Britannia
* Mull of Galloway Lighthouse
* Museum of Scottish Lighthouses
* Scottish Fisheries Museum
* Scottish Maritime Museum
* Signal Tower Museum
* Skerryvore Lighthouse Museum
* The Tall Ship

Military and war|

* Bannockburn Visitor Centre
* Black Watch Museum
* The Cameronians Museum
* Dumfries and Galloway Aviation Museum
* Fort George & The Highlanders Museum
* Gordon Highlanders Museum
* John Paul Jones Cottage Museum
* Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre
* Morayvia
* Orkney Wireless Museum
* Scapa Flow Museum

Natural history|

* D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum
* Dick Institute
* George Waterston Memorial Centre and Museum
* Marischal Museum
* McManus Galleries

Religion|

* Blairs Museum
* Dunblane Museum
* Scalan
* Scottish Jewish Heritage Centre
* St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art

Science and industry|

* Barry Mill
* Mills Observatory
* Museum of the University of St Andrews
* Museum on the Mound
* New Lanark
* Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum
* Robert Smail's Printing Works
* Scotland’s Jute Museum @ Verdant Works
* Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life

Sport|

* R&A World Golf Museum
* Scottish Football Museum

Transport|

* Dundee Museum of Transport
* Grampian Transport Museum
* Museum of Scottish Railways
* Myreton Motor Museum
* Riverside Museum
* Scottish Vintage Bus Museum

Scotland portal

Authority control databases |

* ISNI

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template