The Fitzwillam Museum
The Fitzwilliam Museum houses world-class collections of works of art and antiquities spanning centuries and civilisations.
Highlights include masterpieces of painting from the fourteenth century to the present day, drawings and prints, sculpture, furniture, armour, pottery and glass, oriental art, illuminated manuscripts, coins and medals and antiquities from Egypt, the Ancient Near East, Greece, Rome and Cyprus.
The Fitzwilliam Museum was described by the Standing Commission on Museums & Galleries in 1968 as "one of the greatest art collections of the nation and a monument of the first importance". It owes its foundation to Richard, VII Viscount Fitzwilliam of Merrion who, in 1816, bequeathed to the University of Cambridge his works of art and library, together with funds to house them, to further "the Increase of Learning and other great Objects of that Noble Foundation".
Fitzwilliam's bequest included 144 pictures, among them Dutch paintings he inherited through his maternal grandfather and the masterpieces by Titian, Veronese and Palma Vecchio he acquired at the Orléans sales in London. During a lifetime of collecting, he filled more than 500 folio albums with engravings, to form what has been described as "a vast assembly of prints by the most celebrated engravers, with a series of Rembrandt's etchings unsurpassed in England at that time". His library included 130 medieval manuscripts and a collection of autograph music by Handel, Purcell and other composers which has guaranteed the Museum a place of prominence among the music libraries of the world.
History of the Collections:
Few museums in the world contain on a single site collections of such variety and depth. Writing in his Foreword to the catalogue of the exhibition for Treasures from the Fitzwilliam which toured the United States in 1989-90, the then Director of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, wrote that "like the British Museum, the Fitzwilliam addresses the history of culture in terms of the visual forms it has assumed, but it does so from the highly selective point of view of the collector connoisseur. Works of art have been taken into the collection not only for the historical information they reveal, but for their beauty, excellent quality, and rarity... It is a widely held opinion that the Fitzwilliam is the finest small museum in Europe".
VISITORS INFORMAITON:
Museum Opening Hours
Tuesday–Saturday: 10:00–17:00
Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays:: 12:00–17:00
CLOSED: Mondays, Good Friday and 24-26 & 31 December and 1 January
Admission to the Museum's collections and to exhibitions is free. Visitors' donations help keep the galleries open and are much appreciated.
Please note: Photography is not permitted in the Museum.
Walking:
The Museum is in Trumpington Street, Cambridge, within walking distance (approximately 500 metres) from the city centre.
Rail:
The nearest railway station is Cambridge (approx. 20 mins walk), with taxis and frequent buses to the city centre. Cambridge railway station has frequent services from London (Kings Cross 50 minutes non-stop), Stansted Airport, Peterborough (connecting with the main East coast line) and the Midlands.
Road:
The centre of Cambridge and the area around the Museum are subject to vehicle restrictions and it is advisable not to travel by car into the centre where possible. See Park and Ride options below.
The main routes to Cambridge are: the M11 (from London and the South), turning off at junctions 11, 12 or 13 to head for ring road; and the A14 (from the West and East), turning onto A1307 (from West) or the A1303 (from East).
The Museum is in the Downing area of the city centre, which is indicated from the inner ring road by light blue signs.
Parking:
We regret that there is no visitor parking at the Museum; however, limited Pay and Display and disabled badge-holder parking is available on Trumpington Street.
Nearest car parks are at Grand Arcade, off Pembroke Street, or Queen Anne, Gonville Place.
Further information on parking in the city is provided by Cambridge City Council.
Park & Ride facilities are at:
Babraham Road (off A1307 at Gog Magog roundabout)
Cowley Road (off A14 at A10 junction)
Trumpington (off M11, J11)
Madingley Road (off M11, J13)
Newmarket Road (off A14 on A1303, Stow-cum-Quy interchange)
All with frequent buses to the city centre.
Uni 4 Bus
The Uni 4 bus from Madingley Road Park & Ride and Addenbrooke's Hospital stops outside the Museum
Facilities:
Wheelchairs
Museum wheelchairs are available at the Courtyard Entrance for visitors' use.
Seating
Seating is available in many of the galleries and portable stools are available at the entrances on request.
Induction Loop
An induction loop is available at the Courtyard Entrance and for gallery talks and events.
WC
Lavatories and baby-changing facilities are located near both entrances on the lower ground floor, including accessible toilets.
Cloakrooms
Cloakroom facilities are available at both entrances with manned bag checks and secure coat racks.
Courtyard Cafe
The Courtyard Café is located in the courtyard area of the museum near the southern entrance and serves an all-day menu including morning coffee, afternoon tea, sandwiches and light lunches.
Address:
The Fitzwilliam Museum
Trumpington Street,
Cambridge
CB2 1RB