museums of interest UK
ho...@formco.demon.co.uk
I am new to the topic of SCA but have always had a facination with
armour of the early 20 century.
Can anyone tell me of some good museums (or relevant establishments) in
the south of the UK where they have a good selection to view.
many thanks,
hugo.
Lee Morley
tanks and helmets?
ho...@formco.demon.co.uk wrote in message
<35BDE4...@formco.demon.co.uk>...
Zachary Kessin
ho...@formco.demon.co.uk writes:
> Hi,
> I am new to the topic of SCA but have always had a facination with
> armour of the early 20 century.
> Can anyone tell me of some good museums (or relevant establishments) in
> the south of the UK where they have a good selection to view.
>
> many thanks,
> hugo.
Well if you are going to be at Pennsic come to my Class, "Things to do
for an SCA Visitor to London". OR something like that.
Here is the handout if anyone wants it:
London For the SCA Visitor
Lord William Atwode
Shire of Themesreach
Drackenwald
MKA Zachary Kessin
zke...@tiac.net
Welcome to London, There is much for a history buff to do here. You
will run out of time long before you run out of things to see. However
much of what was period London is gone. The Square Mile, which is the
small area that actually is the City of London and corresponds to the
original Roman city. Was mostly burned to the ground in the fire of
1666. In addition much of London was leveled in the Blitz during World
War II. A bomb fell threw the roof of Both the House of Commons and
Westminster Abbey.
A few words of advice. If you are looking for a train ask for "The
Tube" or "The Underground", a subway is a pedestrian underpass. The
tube is rather good. It is very extensive, the London area is devided
into 6 concentric zones and you must pay for each zone you travel
threw. Hethrow airport is in Zone 6, there is also a fast train from
Heathrow to Paddington Station, its probably worth taking. As the Tube
will take you about 45 min. to an hour from Heathrow to the city
center. for about 3.20 you can get an all day pass that will let you
go anywhere in zone 1 & 2 all day. This is good from 9:30 am
onwards. It will also let you use the buses and the Docklands Light
rail and British rail in those zones. Please note it is not good for
the night buses which run after the tube shuts down (Around 12:30
am). The Tube map is not to scale.
There are many good pubs in London. Far to many to list, but you can
get a beer or soda or diner for a reasonable sum of money in most of
them. Pub food tends to be simple and traditional British. London also
features some of the best Indian food in the world. If you want good
entertainment Try Covent Gardens, which is one of the few places in
London where street performers can legally perform. Worth doing. There
is also a shop at Covent Gardens called “Past Times” a national
chain selling stuff of historic interest. (One of several in
London). Overpriced but worth looking at.
Shopping. In a word Don't, the Pound is worth about $1.64 US or $2.24
Canadian. However the purchase power of the pound is more like $1.05
US. As a tourist you can get a refund on the VAT (Value added Tax)
which is 17.5%.
The British Museum: Tube: Russell Square, Piccadilly Line Price: Free
MUST SEE Things to see, The Rossetta stone and other antiquities,
including Reliefs from the Parthanon in Athens. Artifacts from all of
Period. Coins, jewelry including Elizabeth I's Phoenix Jewel, many
other Period Artifacts.
The British Library:
Tube: Euston or King’s Cross St. Pancras
Price: free.
The UK's national library. Supposed to be good, I've not been yet.
The Palace of Westminster, AKA The Houses of Parliament Tube:
Westminster This building was built in the 1830's after the old
building mostly burned to the ground. The Jewel Tower across the
street is part of the old building. Westmister Abbey is nearby,
containing tombs of many Kings and Queens of England and Great
Britain. As well as Mary Queen of Scots and other famous
people. Westmister abbey costs about 3 pounds.
The National Gallery, Trafalgar square
Tube: Charring Cross, Jubilee, Bakerloo, Northern Line (Charring Cross Branch)
Behind Nelson's Column.
Price: Free
MUST SEE
Paintings from around Europe from 1500 to the present. Except
portraits or major people in British history. Many 15th and 16th
Century Portraits. Also a good gift shop. There is a CD catalog of the
museum for sale, for 55 pounds. This includes good quality photos of
all items in the collection, index anoted and cross referenced.
The National Portrait Gallery, Trafalgar Square
Tube: Charring Cross
To the right of the National Gallery
Price: Free
MUST SEE
Paintings of people important to the history of the nation, from
Richard III, Elizabeth I and many members of her court. Up to the
Modern times. Good gift shop.
The Victoria and Albert
Tube: South Kensington
Price: ????
Best collection of historic clothing in the world, also many
needlework's and period artifacts. Worth seeing. Also a very good
collection of things from the Indian sub-continent. The V&A is HUGE.
The Museum of London
Tube: St. Paul's (Central)
Price: £5.00 , good for 3 months
History of the City of London, from the Roman times to the present,
very interesting collection. Including the Coach of the Lord Mayor of
the City of London. Also there is a section of the original London
Wall. The Museum of London is part of the Barbican center.
HM's The Tower of London
Tube: Tower Hill (District,Circle)
Docklands Light Rail: Tower Gateway
Price: £9.50Tickets can be bought at any tube stop, will save a line.
Must SEE!!!!
The most famous building in London. Features the Yeoman Warders (AKA
the Beefeaters), who give guided tours of the Tower regularly all
day. They know the history of the place better than anyone. They will
point out all sorts of things from the Ravens to the Crown jewels and
the Wall Carvings of the Beuchamp tower. This complex has been a Jail
from people as diverse as Anne Bolyn, Sir Walter Reilly and the Nazi
Rudolf Hess, who was held here after being caught in England. The
Tower is home to the Crown Jewels, the Royal Armouries about 40 Yeoman
Warders, 8 Ravens.
Hampton Court Palace, Surrey.
Brit. Rail: Train from Waterloo,
Price: £9.25
This was the palace of Cardinal Woolsey and then Henry VIII. Contains
the largest Tudor kitchens surviving. Much of the Insides of the
Palace was redone in the reign of William and Mary. I’ve not been
inside this building.
Greenwich Park & the Old Royal Observatory.
Dockland Light Rail: Island Gardens (then take the tunnel under the river)
Brit. Rail: Train from Waterloo Station.
The Park is free, the Observatory is not.
The Park dates from Tudor times. A lovely city park. Worth seeing if
you have time. If you are interested in Navigation or Astronomy the
Observatory is a must. Features historic clocks and navigation
exhibits. Including the history of timekeeping. Also the home of the
Prime Meridian. the is the center of timekeeping.
Richmond Park,
Tube: Richmond. (District)
Price: Free.
The Tudor hunting park, very nice, still contains a heard of dear.
St. James Park, Green Park, Hyde Park, and Kennsington Gardens.
These 4 linked parks are at the hart of London, St. James park is
between Buckingham Palace and the Royal Horse Guard Parades (Army HQ)
. Green Park extends past the Palace to Hyde park, which is across the
square at the far end. This square contains Apley house home of the
first Duke of Wellington. Hyde park and Kennsignton Guardians are
also very nice with a boating lake and the famous Speakers corner.
The Globe Theater
Southwark
Productions of Shakespeare and other period drama, Only during the summer months.
A Few Post Period Things of Interest
Apsley House, No 1 London
Tube: Hyde Park Corner
The home of the first Duke of Wellington. Exhibition relating to his life and the Nepolionic wars.
The Cutty Sark
Greenwich,
A tea ship built in 1869. Old time Sailing merchant Ship.
The Cabinet War Rooms
Tube: St. James Park
Under They Royal Horse Guards
This is where Winston Churchill Planned the war.
Diana Squicciarini
Dear Lord William-
Thanks so much for the Pre-Pennsic Handout for your Sca London class.
Many of the folk from Potters Hall(Merchant Area) went there as a group
a few years ago and found the V&A Pottery exhibit on the top
floor(majolica and Islamic Pottery) to be INCREDIBLE. We all "drooled"
over the majolica(I'm sure you saw our 'trail') especially(I took at
least 15 rolls of film).I recommend this museum highly for pottery study
and the Museum of the City of London(great early English pottery).
I'll spread the word about your class as I plan a return trip in
October.
Till then-
Ashraf Qaraci
Pseudo-Ceramyks
Potters Hall-Space #160
william thomas powers
of a guttering battery pack...but did the list *not* include The Wallace
Collection? A truely great collection of arms and armour and usually
*much* less crowded than the better known ones, the catalog is one
of my prime resource books for weights and lengths of weapons.
There is also the pictures---but I never seem to have enough time
after viewing the "heavy metal"...
wilelm the smith
Bronwynmgn
there were a few comments I wanted to make based on my honeymoon trip from June
14-28 this year:
In article <m33ebmd...@pc-hhu-52.lhr-sys.dhl.com>, Zachary Kessin
<zke...@lhr-sys.dhl.com> writes:
>There are many good pubs in London. Far to many to list, but you can
>get a beer or soda or diner for a reasonable sum of money in most of
>them. Pub food tends to be simple and traditional British.>>
"Reasonable sum of money" depends, I guess, on what you consider reasonable or
where you are. All the pubs we went to charged the same number of pounds for a
drink or food that you would see in dollars in the States, or a little over
half as much again in dollars. Getting an 8-10 ounce glass of soda for L1.25
(over $2) got old really quickly. My husband and I went to one of the local
shopping centers and bought cans of soda for 69p and carried them around with
us.
>The British Museum: Tube: Russell Square, Piccadilly Line Price: Free
>MUST SEE Things to see, The Rossetta stone and other antiquities,
>including Reliefs from the Parthanon in Athens. Artifacts from all of
>Period. Coins, jewelry including Elizabeth I's Phoenix Jewel, many
>other Period Artifacts.
Also, allows you to take flash photographs in the galleries, which is almost
unheard of in the States. Check out the period eating utensils, including
table knives, and the complete and highly carved gittern dated 1280-1330, as
well as the Isle of Lewis chessmen with other game counters and an ivory belt
buckle (with a tongued buckle) in the Medieval Rooms.
>The Palace of Westminster, AKA The Houses of Parliament Tube:
>Westminster This building was built in the 1830's after the old
>building mostly burned to the ground. The Jewel Tower across the
>street is part of the old building. Westmister Abbey is nearby,
>containing tombs of many Kings and Queens of England and Great
>Britain. As well as Mary Queen of Scots and other famous
>people. Westmister abbey costs about 3 pounds.
The Jewel Tower, however, houses only an exhibition about Parliament, mostly
out of our period, so don't pay to go inside unless you are particularly
interested.
At Westminster Abbey, check out the chapter house, which has 14th century wall
paintings and encaustic floor tiles still in place, and the Undercroft Museum,
which has medieval stained glass, some stone carvings, one of which still is
painted an almost flourescent orange, the funeral achievements of Henry V, and
funeral effigies of lots of important people, including Henry VII. The Chapter
House and Undercroft Museum are additional cost to enter.
>The Victoria and Albert
>Tube: South Kensington
>Price: ????
>
>Best collection of historic clothing in the world, also many
>needlework's and period artifacts. Worth seeing. Also a very good
>collection of things from the Indian sub-continent. The V&A is HUGE.
If you are going to the V&A in the near future, check with them; the medieval
collections/areas were under renovation when we were there and not everything
was available.
>HM's The Tower of London
>Tube: Tower Hill (District,Circle)
>Docklands Light Rail: Tower Gateway
>Price: £9.50Tickets can be bought at any tube stop, will save a line.
>Must SEE!!!!
>
>The most famous building in London. Features the Yeoman Warders (AKA
>the Beefeaters), who give guided tours of the Tower regularly all
>day. They know the history of the place better than anyone. They will
>point out all sorts of things from the Ravens to the Crown jewels and
>the Wall Carvings of the Beuchamp tower. This complex has been a Jail
>from people as diverse as Anne Bolyn, Sir Walter Reilly and the Nazi
>Rudolf Hess, who was held here after being caught in England. The
>Tower is home to the Crown Jewels, the Royal Armouries about 40 Yeoman
>Warders, 8 Ravens.
Umm, the Royal Armouries aren't in the Tower any more. They are in the new
Royal Armouries in Leeds, a several hour train trip outside London. There
isn't any armour display in the Tower right now; the area is being redone and
about the only thing you can see is Henry VIII's armor, if you peek through a
crack between the walls blocking off the area. What is in the Tower, and is
new to me, is the "Medieval Palace" section, which was opened in 1993. There
are costumed living history experts there (who work for a company which hires
them out to appropriate places, sort of like a temp company here in the
States...)
>The Globe Theater
>Southwark
>Productions of Shakespeare and other period drama, Only during the summer
>months.
Buy tickets before you go, or you won't be able to get a seat. Go to the show
prepared for rain or you will come home saturated and cold. And if you want a
tour of the theatre, get there before noon, because they don't do tours during
the afternoon performances. And yes, men play the female parts.
I suggest getting a Great British Heritage pass, which you must buy before you
leave the States. It costs about $70, but you get into any British Heritage
property free, except for the Tower of London which is half price. They send
you a large catalog detailing which are their properties, what the opening
schedules are, etc.
We had a great time, and are already planning to go back.
Brangwayna
Bruno Nicoletti
>
> Hi,
> I am new to the topic of SCA but have always had a facination with
> armour of the early 20 century.
> Can anyone tell me of some good museums (or relevant establishments) in
> the south of the UK where they have a good selection to view.
>
> many thanks,
> hugo.
Don't know about 20th Century armour (try the Imperial War Museum, they must
have a couple of tanks in there), but for armour of the Middle Ages, the best
collection in the South East is the Wallace Collection. It used to be the
Tower but they moved it all to Leeds.
David Edge, the Arms and Armour curator, gives a regular guided tours once a
month. Contact the Wallace Collection for dates.
The Wallace Collection is at,
Hertford House
Manchester Square
London
W1M 6BN
Hours: Daily 10-5pm, Sundays 2-5pm
Admission: Free
Nearest tubes are Baker St, Bond St or Marble Arch.
They have a web page as well, but it is mainly the non-armour bits of the
collection, it is at
http://www.demon.co.uk/heritage/wallace/
cheers
bruno
DeeWolff
Michael Lacy
I would also reccomend the Museum of London, which has a very nice medieval
section with lots of artefacts including pilgrim badges, dress accesories
and a few items of furniture. The Victoria and Albert Museum is also a
must, with an excellent collection of medieval works of art, including
several complete effigies, a good number of swords and some armour, the odd
tapestry and lots of highly decorated utensils. The Armourers and Brasiers
Guildhall is another of London's little known collections of armour which
is open to the public. Most of the stuff is up on the walls where it is
hard to get a close look, but there are a number of very fine suits
incluing a 16th century Greenwich armour which are in glass cases that can
be studied in detail. Windsor Castle also has a fine collection of armour,
but unfortunately, they don't allow any photography.
If a visitor has time to take a day to go to Portsmouth, the Mary Rose
exhibit is really fantastic - lots of real basic 'soldier' stuff like
wooden and pewter bowls, utensils, trunks and even preserved bits of
clothing, leatherwork and shoes - the kind of stuff you need for a good
period campsite. And of course, all those longbows.
Michael Lacy