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Exhibition - Eynsham from Prehistory to the 21st Century

“How will we know it’s us without our past?”

(from John Steinbeck’s novel ‘The Grapes of Wrath’)

EYNSHAM MUSEUM & HERITAGE CENTRE AIMS TO PROTECT OUR RICH HERITAGE TO HELP PEOPLE LIVING HERE NOW, AND MANY YEARS FROM NOW, TO KNOW WHO THEY ARE.

We welcome visitors to come and experience Eynsham's amazing history!

We are open from April to November at weekends and Monday Bank Holidays (11am to 4pm). Admission is Free.

We have two exhibitions illustrating some extraordinary stories of life here in the past.

 

 

EYNSHAM FROM PREHISTORY TO THE 21ST CENTURY

Our permanent exhibition in the upstairs gallery features a wide range of displays and artefacts from 200,000 years ago - when mammoths, elephants and lions roamed - to the modern day. Amongst other artefacts, the exhibition includes:

  • A timeline of Eynsham’s long history
  • A mammoth tooth and a very fine Neanderthal stone hand axe

  • A Bronze Age spearhead - probably an offering to the spirits of the place
  • Carved stones and other precious finds from Eynsham Abbey hinting at its former glory

  • A selection of medieval abbey tiles (including one with graffiti and a possible funny story!
  • A fragment from a reliquary casket for holding saintly relics
  • Pottery, coins and brooches from Roman times

  

 

  • Cannon and musket shots – reminders of the battles fought in Oxfordshire during the 17th-century Civil War
  • A selection of distinctive bottles from Eynsham soft drinks manufacturer, Blake & Co, which started production in 1877
  • The ever-popular working model of Eynsham railway station; and a variety of railway memorabilia.

  • Some examples of up-to-date innovation and hi-tech engineering made here in Eynsham are displayed opposite the “state of the art” technology of 200,000 years ago- that amazing hand axe!

 

 EYNSHAM PAST AND PRESENT

In the downstairs gallery, our permanent photographic display, Eynsham Past and Present, features 15 boards all around the room. Old photos and prints of Eynsham are displayed alongside their modern equivalents. People love to see what has changed over the years – and what remains the same.

 

FUTURE PLANS

We are planning a series of smaller changing exhibitions in the downstairs gallery and making our local history library more accessible.

 

We look forward to welcoming you at Eynsham Museum.

Find Us

Bartholomew Room

The Square
Eynsham
Oxfordshire  OX29 4HW

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Gallery

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Eynsham's Story- from prehistory to the 20th century - Photographer Posy Parrinder A small form of Steppe Mammoth - This ancestor of the Woolly Mammoth was living here 200,000 years ago in the lower middle Paleolithic, when the climate was warm.<br/>Painting by Katherine Cropper. Reproduced with her permission. - Photographer Katherine CropperEynsham's Hand Axe - Found near Eynsham Station in a gravel pit alongside bones fro Hippos, Lion and Mammoths - Photographer J Baker-PikeThe Eynsham Angelstained glass representing an unknown saint - The male, bearded bust depicted on this fragment of window glass is hand painted and is thought to be a saint. It dates to the 13th century - Photographer Martin FlatmanGargoyle from Eynsham Abbey - Photographer Steve ParrinderPendant for a horse harness with the arms of Edward11 1307-1327 - Only traces of the gold and enamel on this pendant survive. It would have been one of many that were fixed around the horse's neck like a gorgeous necklace.<br/>The rider would have been a knight or noble or even the Abbot of Eynsham. - Photographer Posy ParrinderA knight on horseback from 14th Century - The image, from a manuscript at Trinity College Cambridge, shows gilded, coat of arms, pendants hanging from a 'peytral' or strap around the horse's chest. - Photographer Posy ParrinderModel of Eynsham Railway - Photographer Posy Parrinder
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