The beauty of visiting a Museum is the sense of immediacy. It is an experience that envelopes and captures the senses.
There is an American saying which holds that “if you want to understand the journey that someone has taken, walk a mile in their shoes”.
It is this sense of the intimate that elevates the experience of history above a potentially dry academic enterprise to something that is tangible and inspiring.
80,000 items in the collection
The County Museum, Dundalk is one of the country’s largest Museums. Over three galleries of permanent exhibition, the entirety of the Irish historical experience may be sampled – be it the arrival of the first peoples through to the Present Day all of Irish life is here.
From the Stone Age to the arrival of the Vikings, the impact of the Anglo-Normans through to the advent of the Information Age the historical experience of our ancestors is presented in a way that is accessible and relevant.
The Museum collection contains approximately 80,000 items ranging from the archaeological to the social; the industrial to the political; the cultural to the sporting.
Each item has a story unique in itself – be it the Ferrari-red three-wheeled, Heinkel motor car or the compass from the SS Dundalk which was sunk in the Irish Sea by a German U-boat just six weeks before the end of WW1 resulting in the loss of 20 lives.
Perhaps most importantly this is not the experience of faceless antecedents, these are people with whom we can readily recognise or identify.
Every item in the collection has a story behind it, one which reveals so much about the item’s owner; not only about the how and why it was used but also the nature of the society at that time.
These are stories of people who persevered and prospered during war, famine and economic devastation – their story is our story.
Bespoke learning experience
With guided tours of the galleries and Dundalk available, a handling collection as well as an intimate 72-seater AV Theatre the Museum is uniquely positioned to provide visitors of all ages and abilities (class groups, CBA students and teachers) with a bespoke learning experience tailored to their specific needs.
The County Museum, Dundalk is one of the country’s greatest secrets but sometimes a secret is worth sharing.
More information can be had by contacting us at 042 9392999.
