Treasures from down the centuries will be packed up and moved up the road as Durham University’s Old Fulling Mill Museum closes this summer. Mark Tallentire takes a tour

IT’S the building that appears on as many sitting room walls as it gets visitors. Well, almost.

The Old Fulling Mill Museum is best known for being part of what is perhaps the most popular view of Durham Cathedral.

Unfortunately, its picture postcard location is also its greatest drawback.

Sitting next to the River Wear, it is liable to flooding. Hidden away on the wooded riverbanks, it is well off the regular tourist route.

Hence, the museum attracts only around 8,000 visitors a year. But all that is about to change.

In June, the mill will close and its collections will be moved to Palace Green Library, where a new Museum of Archaeology will be created in the Wolfson Gallery.

The Northern Echo:
Craig Barclay with one of the displays featuring cup and ring marks found on a stone at Witton Gilbert

For Craig Barclay, curator of the University’s museums, it’s a dream come true.

“We have fantastic collections,” he says, “But at the moment, it isn’t really doing it. There’s so much more we could do to make them more accessible to people.

“To be able to offer our collections to people at the centre of the World Heritage Site is such an exciting opportunity.”

For those with long memories, we’ve been here before.

The newly founded Durham University established a museum in the mill in 1833.

But it moved out later in the 19th century – into what is now Cafe on the Green. The museum returned to the mill in 1975.

Today, it is a true cabinet of curiosities: from a horned god sculpture which Dr Barclay describes as a demonic rabbit to fragments of Saxon crosses.

Somewhat oddly, it has an internationally renowned collection of Samian ware – posh Roman crockery.

Currently on display is Out of the Attic, an exhibition exploring the Mill’s history, offering information about the impending move and asking visitors what they would like to see in the new museum.

About twice as much will be on display as now, Dr Barclay says. Opening is expected early next year.

As for the Mill, its future is undecided.

“It’s such an iconic building. It will continue to play a prominent role in the city,” Dr Barclay says.

  • THE Old Fulling Mill Museum is on The Banks, Durham. Until the end of March, it is open from Friday to Monday, between 11.30am and 3.30pm. From April to June 2, it will be open daily from 11am to 4pm. Entry costs £1 for adults, 50p for children aged five to 16 and over 60s and is free for under-fives and students.
  • Out of the Attic runs until Sunday, April 21.
  • For more information, call the museum on 0191-334-1823.

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