Abingdon County Hall Museum: Difference between revisions
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==Building== |
==Building== |
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[[File:County Hall loggia, Abingdon.jpg|thumb|Internal view of the loggia.]] |
[[File:County Hall loggia, Abingdon.jpg|thumb|Internal view of the loggia.]] |
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The building |
The building was designed by [[Christopher Kempster]] who trained with [[Sir Christopher Wren]] on [[St Paul's Cathedral]] in the [[Baroque architecture|Baroque]] style.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/upload/pdf/abingdon_county_hall.pdf | title=Abingdon County Hall: Information for Teachers | publisher=[[English Heritage]]/[[Palladian Press]] | year=2004 }}</ref> The building, which stands on large pilasters with a sheltered area beneath for use as a market or other municipal functions,<ref name=listed/> was completed in 1683.<ref name=listed/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abingdonmuseum.org.uk/museumhall01.htm |title=The County Hall & Museum Collection |work=Abingdon County Hall Museum |publisher=[[Archive.org]] |date=3 November 2013 |accessdate=8 April 2014 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103153745/http://www.abingdonmuseum.org.uk/museumhall01.htm |archivedate=3 November 2013 }}</ref> It was originally housed a courtroom for the [[assizes]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/abingdon-county-hall-museum/ | title=Abingdon County Hall Museum | publisher=[[English Heritage]] | location=UK | accessdate=8 July 2012}}</ref> [[Nikolaus Pevsner]] said of the building: "Of the free-standing town halls of England with open ground floors this is the grandest".<ref>{{cite web|first=Nikolaus |last=Pevsner |authorlink=Nikolaus Pevsner |year=1966 |url=http://www.abingdon.gov.uk/partners/abingdon-county-hall-museum |title=Abingdon County Hall Museum former website |publisher=[[Archive.org]] |accessdate=31 October 2015 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104144128/http://www.abingdon.gov.uk/partners/abingdon-county-hall-museum |archivedate=4 November 2013 }}</ref> Abingdon was the [[county town]] until it ceded that title to [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]] in 1867. |
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==Collections and exhibitions== |
==Collections and exhibitions== |
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Revision as of 09:10, 18 August 2019
 View of the County Hall building that houses the museum. | |
  Location within Oxfordshire | |
| Established | 1678–1683 (building) 1919 (museum collection) |
|---|---|
| Location | Abingdon, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°40′12″N 1°16′53″W / 51.67°N 1.2815°W |
| Type | Local museum |
| Collection size | Local history |
| Owner | Abingdon Town Council |
| Website | www |
Abingdon County Hall Museum (also known as Abingdon Museum) is a local museum in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England. The museum is run by Abingdon Town Council and supported by Abingdon Museum Friends,[1] a registered charity.[2] It is a Grade II listed building.[3]
Building
The building was designed by Christopher Kempster who trained with Sir Christopher Wren on St Paul's Cathedral in the Baroque style.[4] The building, which stands on large pilasters with a sheltered area beneath for use as a market or other municipal functions,[3] was completed in 1683.[3][5] It was originally housed a courtroom for the assizes.[6] Nikolaus Pevsner said of the building: "Of the free-standing town halls of England with open ground floors this is the grandest".[7] Abingdon was the county town until it ceded that title to Reading in 1867.
Collections and exhibitions
The museum's collections were started in 1919. The museum has permanent collections and presents temporary exhibitions several times a year. There are also smaller exhibitions on local themes that are changed every month.[8] On 1 December 2011, with the help of British Motor Heritage,[9] the last MGB Roadster sports car off the production line in Abingdon in 1980 was lifted through a window 30 feet up, for display in the museum's main gallery from 2012.[10]
The Monks' Map of the River Thames around Abingdon in the 16th century has been held at the town's Guildhall since 1907.[11] After conservation, it has been redisplayed at the museum itself from its reopening in 2012. A reproduction of the Anglo-Saxon Abingdon Sword, discovered in the river at Abingdon and held by the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, is also on display.[12]
From 2010 to 2012, the museum and building underwent a two-year restoration programme,[13] partly funded by the National Lottery. The museum reopened to visitors on 7 July 2012[14] by Martha Howe-Douglas, an actress in the BBC television series Horrible Histories.[15] A new museum café is located in the basement.[16] The museum was officially reopened by the Duke of Gloucester on 8 March 2013.[17][18]
References
- ^ "Abingdon Museum Friends". Abingdon-on-Thames, UK. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
- ^ "Abingdon Museum Friends, registered charity no. 1137089". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
- ^ a b c Historic England. "County Hall and Market House, Abingdon (1199601)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ "Abingdon County Hall: Information for Teachers" (PDF). English Heritage/Palladian Press. 2004.
- ^ "The County Hall & Museum Collection". Abingdon County Hall Museum. Archive.org. 3 November 2013. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Abingdon County Hall Museum". UK: English Heritage. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
- ^ Pevsner, Nikolaus (1966). "Abingdon County Hall Museum former website". Archive.org. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Abingdon County Hall Museum, Culture24, UK.
- ^ "MGB returns to Abingdon". YouTube. 1 March 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
- ^ "Television news item". YouTube. 1 December 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
- ^ "Monks' map was commissioned by Abingdon landowner". Oxford. BBC News. 23 June 2011. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
- ^ "Abingdon Sword replica; Saxon; England, Oxfordshire, Abingdon-on-Thames". eHive, Vernon Systems. Abingdon County Hall Museum. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
- ^ Newsletter[permanent dead link],The Friends of Abingdon, Abingdon Museum, page 2, May 2010.
- ^ Wilkinson, Ben (13 June 2012). "Abingdon's County Hall Museum to reopen next month". The Abingdon Herald. UK. p. 1. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ "Historic day for museum after major revamp". Oxfordshire Guardian. UK. 5 July 2012. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Buns in the Basement". Abingdon County Hall Museum, Abingdon-on-Thames, UK. Archived from the original on 12 July 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Duke arrives for trio of openings". Oxford Mail. 8 March 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
- ^ "Royal Opening for Abingdon Museum". Tourism South East. 8 March 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
