I'm been around a lot of East Yorkshire - and a few counties beyond - visiting ancient and historical sites as part of my research for Chronicles of Empire. The idea was that I explore the feel of the sites to get a better feel and perspective on mediaeval and ancient realities. I usually timed visits to coincide with a display of sorts - anything from jousting to falconry to marching Romans firing siege weapons.
Most were ruins - no exhibits, just stones and walls - but this was no bad thing in some of the best ruins - Rievaulx Abbey for one. And monuments such as Castle Rushen in the Isle of Man are brilliantly preserved in a state practically liveable.
But there was little left of ordinary life.
Cut to the present - there's a very small museum in my home town of Hull - called the "East Riding Museum". Been there before many years ago - remember seeing a couple of waxwork Celts. Thought to take the kids there just as somewhere different to go, especially as recommended by someone recently.
The first thing through the front doors was a life-size recreation of a woolly mammoth. Carry on through the prehistoric world of Yorkshire and you soon end up in the Neolithic period, with period finds from Yorkshire, including some sites I'd visited long ago.
The sections on the Celts and Anglo-Saxons included a wealth of artifacts - not least a few swords - and then after the recreation of a small Celtic village was a very small but richly informative recreation of a Roman Square, surrounded by Roman building facades and finds related to all aspects of Roman life and trade - not to mention a wealth of mosaics (which all look somehow very odd on walls).
Then there was the section on the Middle-Ages onwards after the Vikings - which included some displays of preserved clothing - including little leather shoes for mediaeval babies!
Best of all, perhaps, there was a display - nothing fancy - just a man with a series of loaded tables showing how coins were made up to the Tudor period, hammering out stamps in dies, with arrays of imitation ancient coins around him. I walked away £5 lighter but carrying a small velvet pouch of 10 replica Roman and Celtic coins.
From a research point of view it was easily one of the best places I'd ever visited - and all simply a short bus-ride away, as opposed to some of the long journey's taken, which with small children are perhaps sometimes best avoided.
Apparently, the whole museum had been completely re-done and only re-opened 3 weeks ago. It's only a short walk from where I sign on, so next week I'll be taking a little diversion on the way back home.
It's amazing what you can sometimes discover so close to home.
Most were ruins - no exhibits, just stones and walls - but this was no bad thing in some of the best ruins - Rievaulx Abbey for one. And monuments such as Castle Rushen in the Isle of Man are brilliantly preserved in a state practically liveable.
But there was little left of ordinary life.
Cut to the present - there's a very small museum in my home town of Hull - called the "East Riding Museum". Been there before many years ago - remember seeing a couple of waxwork Celts. Thought to take the kids there just as somewhere different to go, especially as recommended by someone recently.
The first thing through the front doors was a life-size recreation of a woolly mammoth. Carry on through the prehistoric world of Yorkshire and you soon end up in the Neolithic period, with period finds from Yorkshire, including some sites I'd visited long ago.
The sections on the Celts and Anglo-Saxons included a wealth of artifacts - not least a few swords - and then after the recreation of a small Celtic village was a very small but richly informative recreation of a Roman Square, surrounded by Roman building facades and finds related to all aspects of Roman life and trade - not to mention a wealth of mosaics (which all look somehow very odd on walls).
Then there was the section on the Middle-Ages onwards after the Vikings - which included some displays of preserved clothing - including little leather shoes for mediaeval babies!
Best of all, perhaps, there was a display - nothing fancy - just a man with a series of loaded tables showing how coins were made up to the Tudor period, hammering out stamps in dies, with arrays of imitation ancient coins around him. I walked away £5 lighter but carrying a small velvet pouch of 10 replica Roman and Celtic coins.
From a research point of view it was easily one of the best places I'd ever visited - and all simply a short bus-ride away, as opposed to some of the long journey's taken, which with small children are perhaps sometimes best avoided.
Apparently, the whole museum had been completely re-done and only re-opened 3 weeks ago. It's only a short walk from where I sign on, so next week I'll be taking a little diversion on the way back home.
It's amazing what you can sometimes discover so close to home.
