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colmuseums.bsky.social
Colchester Museums
@colmuseums.bsky.social
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We're renowned for Romans, cuckoo about clocks and wild for animals! Custodians of Colchester Castle, Hollytrees Museum and Colchester's Natural History Museum.
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Pencils poised, imaginations soaring. These young storytellers are discovering myths and writing their own in Mythical Creatures at Colchester Castle. Your turn?

#MythicalCreatures #ColchesterCastle #InteractiveLearning
Two boys interact at a museum exhibit; one, wearing a green sports shirt, proudly shows a sketchbook featuring hand-drawn mythical creatures, while the other, in a burgundy top, watches with interest. A red pencil lies on the wooden cabinet between them, hinting at creative activities available. Behind them is a stone-textured wall and part of a colourful display. Promotional text announces the "Mythical Creatures" exhibition at Colchester Castle, running from 26 July 2025 to 22 February 2026. The Colchester Castle logo and photo credit to Tom Archer are also visible.
November 26, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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We’ve worked with AccessAble to publish a Detailed Access Guide for Natural History Museum, Colchester. Plan your visit with clear info on facilities and routes: www.accessable.co.uk/essex/essex-...
Promotional graphic announcing Natural History Museum, Colchester on AccessAble. Large text reads “We are now on AccessAble” with the purple and green AccessAble logo. A laptop screen shows the museum’s AccessAble page with name, address and contact details, plus options for photos, map and accessibility symbols. Two preview images show the museum exterior and an interior gallery scene.
November 25, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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It’s not every day you meet a pair of stockings with a back story. These fine cream silk stockings once belonged to Queen Victoria. Look closely and you’ll spot the crowned “VR” picked out in openwork, a leaf‑shaped clock running neatly to the toes, and the tiny numbers 8 and 12 on each leg.
Close-up of a cream silk stocking laid flat showing the openwork crowned "VR" monogram near the top, fine knit, and a leaf-shaped decorative clock running down the side toward the ankle. Pair of cream silk stockings side by side, showing the doubled top edge with a small semicircular side tab, subtle knit changes at heel and toe, and the small numbers “8” and “12” below the crowned VR monogram.
November 24, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Slip past the door and into the 1200s. Tucked behind the castle’s main entrance is the oldest known graffiti on site, likely carved by the jailer.

What story would you pin to that mark? Plan a visit to see it in person: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/visit/colche...
November 23, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Still haven’t booked for Mini Museum Explorers?

Our next session is this Tuesday, and we’ll be exploring light and shadow in all sorts of fun ways: from shadow play and sensory games to a dark tent and hands-on activities about animals that come out by day or night.
A child is walking between two adults, hands held and feet off the ground. Their long shadows stretch across the pavement in the sunlight. Text reads: “Mini Museum Explorers, 25 November” and “Explore your shadow” with the Natural History Museum logo.
November 22, 2025 at 8:33 AM
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New for teachers: a KS1/2 Mythical Creatures lesson pack, with plans, slides and printable worksheets inspired by our exhibition. Includes a KS2 worksheet snippet.

Download: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/learn/teache...
The image shows a person holding a clipboard against a green background. The clipboard displays a sheet titled “Mythical Creatures” with a gold griffin illustration at the top and decorative green ivy along the edge. Below the title, the text reads: “Suggested lessons and activities related to the Mythical Creatures exhibition.” A purple pen is clipped to the board. To the right, bold white text on the green backdrop says: “Need a hand for lesson plans?” The overall design suggests promotional material for educational resources linked to a museum or themed exhibition.
November 21, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Look at these explorers, eyes wide with wonder (and maybe a bit of mischief?). They’re discovering myths, fossils, and stories brought to life in Mythical Creatures at Colchester Castle.

Curiosity looks good - come try it yourself: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/events/mythical-creatures
A young girl, accompanied by two women smiles as she points at a display case in a museum exhibition. The group appears engaged and cheerful, with the women leaning in to look closely. The exhibition features shells and artefacts, set against a backdrop of stone and display boards. Text on the image promotes the "Mythical Creatures" exhibition at Colchester Castle, running from 26 July 2025 to 22 February 2026. The castle's logo is shown in the top left corner, and photo credit is given to Tom Archer.
November 19, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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New at Colchester Castle: a poppy display sharing how Madame Anna Guérin helped make the poppy a symbol of remembrance. Limited signed copies of The Poppy Lady by Heather Anne Johnson are available in the Castle gift shop. Visit and pick one up: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/visit/colche...
Book cover titled “The Poppy Lady: The Story of Madame Anna Guérin and the Remembrance Poppy” by Heather Anne Johnson. The design features bold red and gold text on a textured background, with several vivid red poppies arranged across the cover. One poppy includes a black centre stamped with lettering, and another is attached to a green tag reading “Armistice Day 1921.” A vintage card partially visible beneath the flowers reinforces the historical theme. The overall composition highlights the origins of the remembrance poppy tradition and its connection to Anna Guérin. The image shows a person seated at a wooden table in front of a whitewashed stone wall, signing a book with a blue pen. The individual is wearing a bright red jacket and a scarf patterned with red poppies, with a red poppy pin visible on the lapel. On the table are two neat stacks of hardcover books titled “The Poppy Lady”, featuring a cover design with red poppies and a monochrome portrait. Behind the person, framed images of poppies and a historic black-and-white photograph with a poppy badge are displayed on the wall. A bold red banner across the top reads: “LIMITED SIGNED BOOKS AVAILABLE IN THE CASTLE GIFT SHOP.” The setting suggests a commemorative book signing event linked to remembrance themes.
November 18, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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Tom’s final closing call. He’s off to dazzle another heritage site, but for tonight he had the honour of telling everyone to go home one last time. Best of luck! #BehindTheScenes #MuseumFamily #LastCallAtTheCastle
November 17, 2025 at 6:19 PM
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Got a preschooler who loves exploring the world around them? Mini Museum Explorers returns on Tuesday, 25 November, and this month we’re playing with light and shadow.
A smiling toddler in a purple top stacks colourful wooden blocks with help from an adult wearing glasses. Text reads: “Mini Museum Explorers, 25 November” and “Create memories together” with the Natural History Museum logo.
November 17, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Ever spotted the royal coat of arms above Colchester Castle’s entrance? Our colleague John explains how to read it and how we likely ended up with it. Come see it yourself: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/visit/colche...
November 16, 2025 at 8:02 AM
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Reading along changes the visit.

Our Castle guides have completed Deaf Awareness training with StageTEXT and we’re developing a live captioned tour.
StageTEXT Captioning Awareness Week 2025 banner over a photo of a costumed castle guide in a top hat speaking in a vaulted stone chamber. Visitors stand in the foreground. A narrow spiral stair and arched alcove with shields and props are visible, showing the uneven floors and tight spaces inside Colchester Castle.
November 15, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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🎄 Most people keep their Christmas decorations in the loft. Ours are just up a slightly more dramatic staircase…

Planning a trip to see Father Christmas? Book your museum event now before dates disappear: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/events/
November 14, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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Today’s #ThrowbackThursday photograph is Colchester’s High Street at the corner with George Street, pictured after a 1923 fire at Paull’s shop. Stand in the same spot today and the rhythms are familiar, but the facades, signage and street furniture have shifted with the century.
Contemporary view from the same street corner, with intact shopfronts, updated signage, modern street furniture and pedestrians, matching the angle of the earlier photograph for comparison.
November 13, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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If shopfronts could talk, what stories would these scorch marks tell? Our #ThrowbackThursday shows a busy street paused in 1923 as onlookers fill the frame, and a once bright window is now a blackened mouth.

Give us your guess and check back this afternoon for the reveal.
Black-and-white street scene showing a busy street corner after a shop fire, with fire hoses on the ground, a fire engine, ladders against a soot-stained shopfront, broken windows and a crowd of onlookers lining the pavement.
November 13, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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Legend has it that an ogre who terrorised Ipswich made a deal with building townsfolk: leave his image on a house and he’d let them build. Look up Eagle Street.

Learn more about the folklore near you at Mythical Creatures, Colchester Castle: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/events/mythical-creatures
A young girl stands between two women, likely family members, as they engage with an interactive display at Colchester Castle. The girl wears a white top with a floral collar, while one woman wears a light hoodie and the other a white blouse embroidered with red and blue flowers. Behind them, a blurred mythical creature illustration adds to the exhibit’s atmosphere. A blue banner at the top right reads: “Mythical Creatures, 26 Jul 2025 – 22 Feb 2026.” The Colchester Castle logo is at the bottom left, with photo credit to “Tom Archer Photography” in the upper right corner.
November 12, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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On Armistice Day we pause together, remembering service and sacrifice.

These photographs come from our archive, selected by participants in the Colchester Then & Now project. They capture quiet moments of remembrance and everyday lives touched by war.
Historic black-and-white photograph showing a formal group gathered around a large war memorial. The monument features a bronze soldier in uniform at its base and a dramatic winged figure holding a sword aloft at the top. The memorial stands on a stepped stone plinth with inscribed panels. The group includes men and women in early 20th-century attire, some wearing coats and hats, and one person holding a wreath. Behind the scene are period buildings with pitched roofs and chimneys, and a tall church spire rising in the background. Historic black-and-white photograph of a munitions factory interior during wartime. The scene shows a large group of workers standing at long workbenches, handling artillery shells arranged in rows. Overhead, a network of beams, pulleys, and suspended tanks dominates the industrial setting, with ropes and cables hanging down to support machinery. The factory has high windows allowing natural light to filter in, illuminating the busy workspace. Workers wear protective aprons and caps, and the overall atmosphere conveys mass production and coordinated effort typical of early 20th-century wartime industry. Historic newspaper clipping featuring a black-and-white photograph of two uniformed tram workers standing beside a tramcar. The person on the left wears a long dark coat, wide-brimmed hat, and a cross-body strap, holding a ticket punch and papers, while the person on the right is dressed in a double-breasted uniform coat and cap. Visible text below the image reads: “Colchester’s first lady tram conductor – a photo taken in 1915. Lady drivers were the next step.” The surrounding article text discusses wartime roles and contributions, indicating the image documents an early milestone in women’s employment during World War I. Historic black-and-white photograph showing a line of uniformed soldiers standing in formation along a cobblestone street. Each soldier carries a rifle slung over the shoulder and wears a peaked cap, tunic, and puttees typical of early 20th-century military attire. Behind them, several civilians observe from the pavement near the entrance of a stone-fronted building with large windows and signage reading “Westminster” at the top. To the right, another sign above a doorway reads “Printing.”
November 11, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Today we’re marking #OddSocksDay at the Castle. Mismatched, loud, subtle or silly, it’s a simple way to say everyone belongs. Show us your socks with a reply, and pass the kindness on.
November 10, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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Today we pause for Remembrance Sunday. This year our Then & Now displays include a small tribute to Anna Guérin, sometimes called the "Poppy Lady of France". After the First World War she championed an Inter Allied Poppy Day and helped set Britain’s first Poppy Day in 1921.
Black-and-white photograph of a person wearing a military-style uniform with a high-collared jacket and decorative ribbons pinned to the chest. The individual also wears a peaked cap with a soft crown. In the lower left corner, a photographer’s studio mark reads “Lumi Smith, Jackson, Miss.” Overlaid on the image is a bright red fabric poppy with a green stem and a yellow tag that reads: “DECORATION DAY 1921 POPPY LAST FROM FRANCE.” The composition combines historical portraiture with a commemorative symbol, referencing early remembrance traditions following World War I.
November 9, 2025 at 8:00 AM
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Cosy season sorted. From apple-scented candles and a book of witchy cocktails to warm socks, a very friendly dragon, or history mugs, the Castle gift shop is full of little comforts for dark evenings.

Find something special this November. We’re open daily 10–5. What would you take home?
November 8, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Step back into Roman Colchester! Colchester was Britain’s first city and the capital of Roman Britain. Known as Camulodunum, it was a thriving hub of trade, culture, and innovation. Every object in this display tells a piece of that story.
classicalalan.bsky.social Dr Alan Montgomery @classicalalan.bsky.social · 20d
A wonderful selection of ancient Roman finds from the city of Colchester in Essex, known in ancient times as Camulodunum, including jewellery, coin hoards, pottery and fresco fragments. Now on display at Colchester Castle. @colmuseums.bsky.social #FindsFriday
A display case at Colchester Castle filled with jewellery, coin hoards, pottery and fresco fragments from the late Roman period.
November 7, 2025 at 12:07 PM
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Saint George towers over a tiny dragon on this medieval carved bone lid, symbolising good’s triumph over evil. Not quite medieval fantasy, and yet…

See how art and myth collide in Mythical Creatures at Colchester Castle: colchester.cimuseums.org.uk/events/mythical-creatures
A carved bone relief depicts a mounted warrior slaying a dragon with a spear. The figure is enclosed within a circular border and surrounded by decorative foliage motifs. The weathered surface suggests historical age. A blue banner at the bottom reads: “Mythical Creatures, 26 Jul 2025 – 22 Feb 2026.” The Colchester Castle logo is displayed in the lower left corner.
November 7, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Did you guess our #ThrowbackThursday? It’s West Stockwell Street! The photo from 1940 shows a jettied, timber‑framed house with small leaded windows and steep gables.
Black-and-white street view with a timber-framed house jutting over the pavement. The upper floor overhangs on carved beams, with small leaded windows and steep gables; a quiet, narrow roadway in front.
November 6, 2025 at 12:02 PM
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It’s #ThrowbackThursday and we have a quiet corner with a timber frame, an upper floor that seems to float above the pavement, and small leaded panes catching the light. Where do you think this is?

Have a guess and come back for the reveal after lunch.
Black-and-white street view with a timber-framed house jutting over the pavement. The upper floor overhangs on carved beams, with small leaded windows and steep gables; a quiet, narrow roadway in front.
November 6, 2025 at 8:01 AM
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Before fireworks, there was the hearth. Families worried about sparks and strange luck, so they hid shoes and clothes in chimneys, walls and under stairs. Clothing was thought to keep a person’s imprint and to stand guard for the household.
Short brown wool coat or doublet fragment with a single purple velvet cuff, high round neck and small buttons, laid flat to show worn lining and stitching. Half of a small brown wool boy’s coat with many rough patches and visible linen lining at the shoulder, laid flat to show repairs and age. Pair of small black leather children’s shoes with single lace ties and worn soles, photographed side by side to show age and hand stitching. Cream coloured 18th‑century child’s bodice lining with short sleeves and low neckline, flattened to show fragile fabric and faint brown striped remnants.
November 5, 2025 at 8:00 AM