The Stewartry Museum is a local museum in

Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright ( ; sco, Kirkcoubrie; gd, Cille Chùithbeirt) is a town, parish and a Royal Burgh from 1455 in Kirkcudbrightshire, of which it is traditionally the county town, within Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The town lies southwest of ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, which covers the history of this part of

Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or ...

History

The museum was originally founded in 1879 and housed on the top floor of Kirkcudbright Town Hall. The museum moved to its current building designed by architect Robert Wallace, in 1893 due to the increasing size of the museum collection. The museum was maintained by the Stewartry Museum Association until 1990 when control of both the museum and the building passed to Stewartry District Council. After the Scottish councils were reorganised in 1996, management of the museum was passed to

Dumfries and Galloway Council Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Collection

Collections chiefly relate to the human and natural history of the Stewartry, also known as Kirkcudbrightshire. The museum, and the companion art venue Kirkcudbright Galleries, house two nationally Recognised Collections of art and archaeology. The museum houses one of the oldest surviving sports trophies in the United Kingdom called the Siller Cup. Objects illustrative of the folklore, traditional crafts, and agricultural life of the area are also displayed here. Archaeological collections include significant Mesolithic and Neolithic holdings of barbed arrow heads, axe heads and other material from the Early Medieval and later periods - including Viking weaponry. The Museum is a recipient of finds from the Treasure Trove scheme. The Stewartry also houses a significant archive relating to local, family, civic, and social history, including early modern Borough Records with references to numerous witch-trials and attendant incarcerations in

Kirkcudbright Tolbooth Kirkcudbright Tolbooth is a historic municipal building in Kirkcudbright in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Built between 1627 and 1629 to serve the town as a centre of commercial administration, a meeting place for the council, and a prison, ...

. The numerous bygones and natural history specimens from local fresh and saltwater habits are a well loved aspect of the museum. In 2015 the museum put a lens from

Little Ross lighthouse Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film *The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...

on display for the first time. It was made in Paris by the French company,

Barbier, Benard, et Turenne Barbier, Benard, et Turenne (BBT) was a French company founded in 1862, specializing in the manufacture of spotlights, Fresnel lenses for lighthouses, and lighting systems. It was the world's leading producer of lighthouse beacons from the end of ...

in 1896 and was used by the lighthouse until 1960. It was donated to the museum by the

Northern Lighthouse Board The Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB) is the general lighthouse authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man. It is a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas. History The NLB was formed by Act of P ...

in 2004. The museum also has casts made from rock art carvings at High Banks Farm which has several groups of

cup and ring marks Cup and ring marks or cup marks are a form of prehistoric art found in the Atlantic seaboard of Europe (Ireland, Wales, Northern England, Scotland, France (Brittany), Portugal, and Spain (Galicia) – and in Mediterranean Europe – Italy (in Alp ...

. The collection also has slabs with cup and ring marks from Blackmyre and Laggan.

References

{{Scottish Museums and Art Galleries Museums in Dumfries and Galloway Local museums in Scotland 1893 establishments in Scotland Museums established in 1893 Kirkcudbright