Ipswich Museum closed its doors in October for a two year renovation of the building and the galleries. The building opened in High Street in 1881, having moved from its original building in Museum Street, and was showing its age. The collection of over 200,000 exhibits are all being carefully decanted before building works can commence. Each object is taken down and cleaned, conserved and packed in special boxes or crates to keep them safe until the Museum is re-opened. The procedure is expected to take at least eight months.  Some items, such as the giraffe, will stay insitu and will have to be carefully protected whilst building work goes on around it. 

The work has been possible thanks to Ipswich Borough Council and a successful £8 million Heritage Lottery Grant, helped by the Friends of Ipswich Museums who have through grants and donations contributed another £200,000 to the refurbishment.

The Friends continue their fund-raising through membership, talks and social events. We are pleased to have contributed to the current exhibition, Landscape Rebels which runs until 16 April 2023. This is a must-see free exhibition at Christchurch Mansion looking at how artists have viewed the landscape, climate change and how sustainable natural resources are used.  Some items from the Museum are displayed, such as now-endangered pangolins.

For more information on FoIM visit our website: www.foim.org.uk or email: contact@foim.org.uk.