The City Adventurers took a day trip to Derby and explored the museums in the centre of the city. Derby is part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
The Derwent Valley Mills and the surrounding landscape were inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2001. They achieved international recognition as the valley “saw the birth of the factory system, when new types of building were erected to house new technology for spinning cotton. The need to provide housing and other facilities resulted in the creation of the first modern industrial settlements.”
We began our visit to Derby at Pickford’s House, the professional showcase and family home of Georgian architect Joseph Pickford.
Then we headed into town and the Derby Museum & Art Gallery. Derby Museums is home to the world’s largest collection of art works by Joseph Wright of Derby.
The museum also houses the “Notice Nature Feel Joy” gallery, which profiles nearly 2,000 specimens from their natural history collection.
Our final stop was the Museum of Making at Derby Silk Mill. This opened in 2021.
We took a well earned break at the River Kitchen, before heading around the museum. There is a viewing window on the top floor. Unfortunately you cannot get to the other side of the building from the view, as the space is hired out to creatives. So we had to go down a floor and up again to visit the small shop and temporary exhibition on the far side.
As well as displays with information, the museum offers a “behind the scenes” gallery where objects are displayed as if in storage.
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