Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery seeks help to keep Bronze Age treasure in Shropshire

Shropshire Council’s Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery is seeking to raise £40,000 to buy a rare collection of archaeologically significant Bronze Age objects so that they can be kept, conserved and displayed in the county for all to see.

The collection was found in the Shropshire Marches by an anonymous metal detector user in May 2018, alongside what could be the most significant piece of Bronze Age metalwork ever discovered in Britain – the Shropshire Sun Pendant.

The Sun Pendant will reside at the British Museum; however, it will go on display for the first time ever at Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery from Saturday 10 September 2021 until 12 December 2021.

Displaying these important objects in situ together for the first time at Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery will offer a unique opportunity for visitors to learn about this fascinating period of Bronze Age Shropshire.

Fay Bailey, Shropshire Council’s manager for Shropshire Museums and Archives, said:

“The vast array of high-quality metalwork from this landscape suggests that the Shropshire site was an important location for ceremonial activity for over a thousand years.

“These objects and ongoing fieldwork at the findspot reveal important discoveries about this period in British prehistory, advancing our collective archaeological knowledge and understanding of why precious objects would be deposited in a certain area.

“These finds also have the potential to help us date the transition between Bronze and Iron Ages.”

Cecilia Motley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for communities, place, tourism and transport, added:

“It will be wonderful to have the Sun Pendant back here in Shropshire where it belongs, and it would be great to be able to display the other items alongside it if we can for local people and visitors to enjoy.

“The last 15 months have been difficult for everyone and, as restrictions ease, we are looking forward to people returning to our county to enjoy all it has to offer, and I’m confident that this beautiful collection will be a real draw.”

To find out more, or to donate to the cause, people can visit https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/keepitinthecounty-1