Wells & Mendip Museum

Wells & Mendip Museum Discover the secrets of the Mendip caves, why early humans settled here, and why the Romans invaded

Archaeology; Natural History; Geology and Caving; Needlework Samplers; Mining and Local History; The Harry Patch Memorial;The Witch of Wookey Hole: Cathedral statuary.

Want to see local history being uncovered in real time? 🏛️We’re hosting a free guided visit to the active Westbury Roman...
18/06/2026

Want to see local history being uncovered in real time? 🏛️
We’re hosting a free guided visit to the active Westbury Romano-British Farmhouse excavation on Thursday 25th and Friday 26th June at 2:30 PM. Come along to hear directly from the archaeologists about the 3rd-century farmstead they’ve been unearthing.
Spaces are limited to 20 people per day, so booking is essential.
Call 01749 673477 or email [email protected] to book your free slot.
(The visit involves a 1.5-mile walk on level ground. Full directions will be sent out to everyone who signs up at the start of the week.)

Perks of volunteering at the museum: getting to look through history, and this view. 🏛️✨We’re definitely biased, but the...
16/06/2026

Perks of volunteering at the museum: getting to look through history, and this view. 🏛️✨
We’re definitely biased, but the library has to have the best seat in the city. If you love local history, fancy helping us sort through the archives, or just want to try something new, we’d love to have you.
Come join the team! Drop us a DM or head over to our website to find out how to get involved.

We know the maker of one of the museum’s samplers, Ann Dudden, was born in 1794 in Frome and was baptised there in a Zio...
15/06/2026

We know the maker of one of the museum’s samplers, Ann Dudden, was born in 1794 in Frome and was baptised there in a Zion Independent Chapel. Religious Nonconformity flourished in the Mendip area during the 18th and 19th centuries amongst urban and village craftspeople, miners, quarry and mill workers. Baptists, Methodists, Quakers and Moravians all worshiped in chapels, which were regularly given the name ‘Zion Chapel’ especially if situated on a hill, the preferred location. Zion is the biblical name for where God dwells.
Today there streets named Zion Hill in Oakhill and Shepton Mallet where chapels were built. Ann’s sampler depicts two wonderful bronze pillars from the Temple of Solomon, another Nonconformist motif.
The museum has a room dedicated to displaying some of its sampler collection.

13/06/2026

In stock in museum shop soon!

There are five rivers in Somerset called the Yeo! To the south the Somerset Yeo, also called the River Ivel, rises in Do...
09/06/2026

There are five rivers in Somerset called the Yeo! To the south the Somerset Yeo, also called the River Ivel, rises in Dorset and flows through Sherborne and Yeovil to join the River Parret near Langport.
The Cheddar Yeo rises at Gough’s Cave in Cheddar George. Its catchment is a wide area of the Mendip plateau, flowing underground before surfacing. From there it makes its way through Cheddar before joining the River Axe near Crook Peak.
The Congresbury Yeo rises at Compton Martin and flows north west into Blagdon Lake and Congresbury to enter the Severn Estuary at Woodspring Bay.
The Lox Yeo rises near Winscombe and flows south west before joining the Axe near Loxton.
Finally the Land Yeo rises on Dundry Hill and flows north and west to Wraxall and Clevedon where it enters the Bristol Chanel. Image: Cheddar lake, created by damming the Cheddar Yeo.

Detail from an early 20thC postcard in the museum collections

🎨 Our new exhibition with Martin Bentham RWA opens tomorrow morning (Saturday 30th May). ✨ ...
29/05/2026

🎨 Our new exhibition with Martin Bentham RWA opens tomorrow morning (Saturday 30th May). ✨ Martin’s work is heavily inspired by nature, with most of his oil paintings created entirely outdoors on-site to capture the real textures and light of the landscape.
The exhibition is only running until next Saturday, 6th June, so make sure to stop by the museum gallery this week.
Open: 10:00am – 4:00pm (Note: we are closed Sundays and Mondays)
Admission: Free entry to exhibition only

Looking for the perfect weekend plan? 🌿 On Saturday, 6th June, entry to both the museum and our hidden medieval walled g...
26/05/2026

Looking for the perfect weekend plan? 🌿 On Saturday, 6th June, entry to both the museum and our hidden medieval walled garden is completely FREE for our Garden Open Day & Plant Sale!
Normally a paid entry, this is your chance to explore our indoor galleries, wander the garden, and pick up some new plants.
Join us from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm for plants, refreshments, and history. Admission is free, but donations are warmly welcomed! 👋
📍 8 Cathedral Green, Wells, BA5 2UE
⏰ Saturday, 6th June | 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

X marks the spot. In 1956 the then Hon. Curator of the museum Professor Leo Palmer used a ‘Megger Earth Tester’ hoping t...
23/05/2026

X marks the spot. In 1956 the then Hon. Curator of the museum Professor Leo Palmer used a ‘Megger Earth Tester’ hoping to prove the existence of an undiscovered large chamber close to the Great Chamber of Lamb Leer Cavern, one of Mendip’s caves.

The device measured ground resistance which would change depending on the nature of the underground area being surveyed. Palmer used his results to predict the location of ‘Palmer’s Chamber’, but it has never been found.

The museum has a gallery ‘Netherworld’ dedicated to discovering and exploring caves by digging and cave diving. Come along and have a look!

The Megger booklet is in the museum’s collections

Why Wells? In a series of essays in this new publication, the author Dr Nick Axten tells the story of the city. He inves...
18/05/2026

Why Wells? In a series of essays in this new publication, the author Dr Nick Axten tells the story of the city. He investigates, describes, and offers explanations how the geology, landscape, people and buildings have shaped this extraordinary city. Published by the museum Why Wells? is a 54 page publication on sale in our shop for £5.00p.

Vallis Vale lies just west of Frome and contains a famous geological feature, the ‘De La Beche’ unconformity, which can ...
16/05/2026

Vallis Vale lies just west of Frome and contains a famous geological feature, the ‘De La Beche’ unconformity, which can be seen in an abandoned quarry. An island of steeply dipping Carboniferous Black Rock Limestone, eroded during the Triassic period, was gradually covered by rising sea levels in Late Triassic and Early Jurassic times. In these warm seas thin limestones, clays and conglomerates of the Upper Triassic Penarth Group were deposited onto the Carboniferous limestone landmass.
A lantern slide at the museum shows how this looked in the 1930s. The museum has a gallery dedicated to understanding the extraordinary geology of the area.

Address

8 Cathedral Green
Wells
BA52UE

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

1749-673477

Website

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