About the Event
Discover the artistry and ingenuity of ancient Peru through a selection of Pre-Columbian textiles from the museum’s collections. This session offers a rare chance to see fragile fabrics up close and to learn how they were made, used, the symbolic meanings of their depictions, and how they have been preserved over centuries. No prior knowledge is needed, just curiosity about how threads, colours, and patterns can reveal the lives and beliefs of people long ago.
Learn about a range of queer stories and those who challenged gender expectations throughout history, from trans lichenologist Elke Mackenzie, to the deep love expressed by some expedition members for their companions, to artistic expressions of gender over long polar winters, to the surprising connection between Hunter & Palmers biscuits and the taboos around discussing homosexuality in the 20th century.
Important Information
What is an orrery? Why is the clock chiming 13? Why would you collect and display a set of plaster horses’ teeth, some green spectacles and several hundred pocket calculators?
Join us for a tour of the Whipple’s collection in 10 objects, featuring spectacular instruments, fascinating scientific stories, and links to some of Cambridge’s most famous names.
Meet at the reception point in the Main Gallery.
Book your free tickets here!
Enjoy a bespoke guided walk around the Museum of Classical Archaeology and a unique opportunity to explore ancient pottery sherds and objects from Ancient Rome with Education Coordinator Martha Heemskerk.
How do I book a place on a Touch Tour?
Free, booking required.
To make a booking, please email us: info@museums.cam.ac.uk
Enjoy a bespoke guided walk around the War Craft exhibition at The Fitzwilliam Museum with a handling session of coins and personal objects made in times of war with exhibition curator Dr Richard Kelleher. Hear the stories of soldiers, civilians and prisoners of war who made them.
How do I book a place on a Touch Tour?
Free, booking required.
Enjoy a bespoke guided walk around the Whipple Museum of the History of Science and explore a fascinating selection of sensory objects in the Museum's Learning Gallery with Learning Coordinator Alison Giles.
How do I book a place on a Touch Tour?
Free, booking required.
To make a booking, please email us: info@museums.cam.ac.uk
Can you imagine a cleaner, greener future? This June we’re handing over the Museum to artist-activist Jade Pollard-Crowe and some of Cambridge’s brightest early career researchers for an exploration of the natural world, supported by Cambridge Zero.
With hands-on activities in the Learning Gallery and lightning talks in the Upper Gallery, there’s something for everyone. Work together to create a collaborative climate map, get inspired by our collections, and share your ideas for change.
Drop-in, Learning Gallery & Upper Gallery (All ages)
Unwind with us at the end of the day and explore the Museum in an atmospheric evening setting.
Drop into a range of activities throughout our galleries. Take inspiration from LGBTQ+ people in our collection's history to help create a new artwork for the Museum, collaborating with environmental artist Kaitlin Ferguson. Join a mini-tour celebrating the Museum's queer history, do some sketching, explore our handling collection of real fossils, or if this all sounds too busy - just soak up the atmosphere.
This event is FREE, but a ticket is needed.
Ice Age Time Machine
Dr David Waterhouse trained as a palaeontologist and for the past 20 years has been involved in studying the animals that lived during that last Ice Age. He's been the curator of the Polar Museum since 2023 and we're thrilled to be welcoming him for a talk on one of his greatest passions.
From David:
Learn about a range of queer stories and those who challenged gender expectations throughout history, from trans lichenologist Elke Mackenzie, to the deep love expressed by some expedition members for their companions, to artistic expressions of gender over long polar winters, to the surprising connection between Hunter & Palmers biscuits and the taboos around discussing homosexuality in the 20th century.
Important Information
