Bristol Museum & Art Gallery
About
A grand Edwardian Baroque building on Queens Road near Clifton, opened in 1905, holding Bristol's civic art and natural history collections under one roof: Old Master and contemporary paintings, an Egyptology gallery, taxidermy and dinosaur exhibits, and a strong Bristol-made-glass and applied art collection. It sits a short walk from the university, the Downs and the top of Park Street, making it an easy add-on to a Clifton visit. Entry to the permanent collection is free; check current admission terms before you go.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓Old Master and contemporary painting collections
- ✓Egyptology and ancient world galleries
- ✓Natural history and dinosaur exhibits
- ✓Bristol-made glass and decorative art
Tips
- →Open Tuesday-Sunday 10:00-17:00, closed Mondays; confirm before visiting.
- →A good wet-weather option combined with Clifton and Park Street.
- →Close to the University of Bristol's Wills Memorial Building, worth a look from outside.
Best Season
More Attraction Activities
Clifton Suspension Bridge
Brunel's 1864 suspension bridge across the Avon Gorge. Free to cross on foot or by bike; only cars pay the £1 toll.
Brunel's ss Great Britain
Brunel's restored 1843 ocean liner, afloat in the dry dock where she was built, with a glass sea letting you walk beneath the hull.
M Shed
Bristol's free social history museum on the Harbourside, in a real dockside transit shed, now home to Banksy's Grim Reaper.