Penrith and Eden Museum

18/05/2026

02/05/2026

A reminder that on Bank Holiday Monday, May 4th, the Museum will be open as usual from 10am to 4pm. Admission is free. We hope you will enjoy your visit.

20/04/2026

Penrith & Eden Museum, and Penrith Tourist Information Centre will be closed this week to allow for essential maintenance works. Re-opening at 10am on Saturday 25 April.
For all Museum and collection enquiries during this time please contact [email protected].
The Tourist Information team will still be available to assist with general tourism enquiries by phone on 01768 867466 during this time.
We thank you for your understanding and apologise for the temporary inconvenience.

15/04/2026

Temporary Closure Notice – Penrith & Eden Museum, and Penrith Tourist Information Centre will be closed from Monday 20 April to Friday 24 April 2026 to allow for essential maintenance works. Re-opening at 10am on Saturday 25 April.

For all Museum and collection enquiries during this time please contact [email protected].
The Tourist Information team will still be available to assist with general tourism enquiries by phone on 01768 867466 during this time.

We thank you for your understanding and apologise for the temporary inconvenience.

11/04/2026

Now on display is the gold posy ring dating to the post medieval period (c.AD 1500-1700) which was found at Barton and designated Treasure by the Portable Antiquities Scheme. It was valued at £750 and bought for the Museum by the Friends of Penrith and Eden Museum. Posy (short for poesy) rings of this period comprise a simple gold band engraved with a brief sentiment or poem inside. They were given as an expression of love, as a wedding ring, or a means of showing regard and friendship. The interior of the band bears the inscription: ‘Constant in Affection’ written in Italic script. This lettering was generally replaced by Roman capitals in the second quarter of the 17th century and became usual for late 17th century and 18th century posy rings. Incised on the outer side are floral designs and the motif of a hound chasing a hare – probably symbolising the object of the lover’s affection. Coincidentally Wordsworth’s poem ‘The Leech Gatherer’ located on Barton Fell describes a hare running over the moorland of Barton Fell: "The hare is running races in her mirth, And with her feet she from the plashy earth Raises a mist, that, glittering in the sun Runs with her all the way, wherever she doth run."

04/04/2026

100 years ago, Easter visitors to the area would have carried a guidebook such as the one pictured - Ward Lock & Co's Illustrated guidebook to the English Lake District. This edition was published in 1923 and includes adverts for motor transport between Penrith and Patterdale.

01/04/2026

Penrith & Eden Museum will be open on Good Friday and Easter Monday from 10am to 4pm. FREE ENTRY

02/03/2026

Friends of Penrith Museum talk:
What the Romans left behind - with Graham Ryan
Tuesday 3 March
2pm at the Quaker Meeting House, Meeting House Lane, Penrith
Members free, Visitors £5.00
For Friends of Penrith Museum membership details contact the Secretary - [email protected]

14/01/2026

ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS MORNING - THIS SATURDAY - 17 January from 10.30 to 11.40
Bring your Archaeological finds to Penrith & Eden Museum to have them identified and recorded by the region’s Portable Antiquities Scheme Finds Liaison Officer.
Anyone is welcome to bring along for identification portable archaeological material or historical objects they have found or acquired locally.
For anyone with several objects please book an appointment in advance at
https://LANCUM-FLO.eventbrite.com.
For further information on Finds Days see Meeting with a FLO in Lancashire and Cumbria – Cumbria or email [email protected].

05/01/2026

Happy New Year! Our first ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS MORNING of 2026 is on Saturday 17 January from 10.30 to 11.40.
Bring your archaeological finds to Penrith & Eden Museum to have them identified and recorded by the region’s Portable Antiquities Scheme Finds Liaison Officer.
Anyone is welcome to bring along for identification portable archaeological material or historical objects they have found or acquired locally.
For anyone with several objects please book an appointment in advance at
https://LANCUM-FLO.eventbrite.com.
For further information on Finds Days see https://finds.org.uk/counties/cumbria/finds-days/ or email [email protected].