EUROPE

by Julie Obermeyer, Manager

The Peace Museum is the only museum devoted to peace in the UK. Since its establishment in 1994, the museum has built a collection of over 7,000 items and developed travelling exhibitions that interpret the story of peace to local, national and international audiences.

The museum interprets peace on three levels: peace in terms of “peace and war,” peace in terms of “community,” and peace in terms of “personal peace,” or what an individual needs to feel at peace. All of the museum’s exhibitions and programmes strive to address each of these aspects of peace.

The museum consists of three galleries with displays chronicling the development and work of the peace movement throughout the 20th century, the anti-nuclear movement, and peace camps in the UK. Posters, paintings, sketches, sculpture, banners, and objects complement the text panel displays and help bring the story of peacemaking to life in a colourful way. For example, there are two placards created by the Peace Pledge Union in 1937 which were carried in demonstrations that year. And a banner from the Church of England was used on a march organized by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) in 1961.

The Peace Museum also provides outreach to a variety of organisations through its programme of travelling exhibitions. Organisations are welcome to request exhibitions and the museum will then send the requested exhibition (in one box) out for a specified time. The travelling exhibitions have been well-received and have proven popular. Currently, the museum has five travelling exhibitions available for free loan to the public by request (there is a charge for shipping).

The five travelling exhibitions include:

“Women Peacemakers”
Examines women and women’s organisations that have struggled for peace.

“Champions of Peace: Nobel’s Peace Prize”
Introduces the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize and provides a critical appreciation of how the prize came into being and the ways it has been controversial.

“A Vision Shared: Art from the History of the Peace Movement” Examines peace movements over the last 100 years and some of the challenges faced. (This exhibition can be viewed on the website.)

“Such a Journey: on Bradford’s People”
Examines what peace means to people in Bradford, UK through poetry, stories, and drawings.

“Hiroshima and Nagasaki” (donated from Japan)
Shows the devastation of the bombings and post-war reconstruction.

We are a resource for peacemakers and peacemaking and hope that visitors from near and far will be inspired and encouraged to work for peace and justice.

Address: 10 Piece Hall Yard, Bradford, BD1 1PJ, UK
Tel: +44-(0)1274-434009
Homepage: http://www.peacemuseum.org.uk
Open: Wednesdays and Fridays, 11:00am-3:00pm and other times by arrangement
Admission: Free

(Originally published on May 5, 2008)