Abergavenny Museum and Castle
The Castle, Castle Street Abergavenny Monmouthshire NP7 5EE. tel: 01873 854282
Abergavenny Museum and the Castle grounds are open every day 11am-4pm but are closed on Mondays and Wednesdays. Entry is free, except for a few special events.
The Museum is in the grounds of Abergavenny Castle where you can explore the ruins of the Norman Castle and read the information panels or picnic at the tables scattered around the grounds. The lovely view from outside the Museum entrance is of the Blorenge mountain and the Usk valley.
The Museum
On display are archaeological remains excavated from the area and items donated by local benefactors, illustrating many different eras. Recreations of a Victorian Welsh farmhouse kitchen, a saddler’s workshop and Basil Jones’s grocery shop remind people of the more recent past. A spooky air raid shelter enables children to re-create some of the atmosphere of the Second World War. Whiskey the Turnspit Dog has long been a favourite with visitors. Explorer packs are available for children. There is a small shop with a good selection of books and gifts. Exhibitions are changed regularly and benefit from a “listening post” and a screen to show exhibition related images, both funded by the ALHS.
Current Exhibition
The current exhibition entitled ‘Toys Collected’ runs until early 2027. The exhibition features a collection of Wendy Boston toys which were originally made at the factory in Abergavenny. You can read more about Wendy Boston in our free download Wendy Boston and the Bears: the Toy Industry in Abergavenny and Crickhowell.
Museum History
Friends of Abergavenny Museum committee saved the crumbling Regency ‘Castle House’ on the site of the Norman keep from demolition. They raised funds to create the first Abergavenny Museum in 1959. The committee went on to found Abergavenny Local History Society. The chairman of the committee was Alfred Jackson while his brother Ernest, was the secretary. Duggan Thacker was the skilled curator of the museum. The museum was handed over to Abergavenny Council in 1971 – commemorated in the Jackson plaque alongside the path leading to the museum.
The Victorian Garden in the Castle Grounds
Abergavenny Local History Society has created a garden after the style of a Victorian garden to complement the Museum’s Victorian collection. It was inspired by the extensive flower and pleasure gardens that were in the Castle grounds in the Victorian Age and you can read more about it on the information board. Two curved cast iron benches, also in a Victorian style, provide a quiet area for contemplation or a picnic lunch. The garden is maintained by volunteers from the Society. If you would like to join the volunteers working in the garden please contact alhs@live.co.uk
More Information
See more details here – https://www.monlife.co.uk/heritage/abergavenny- museum -castle/
Follow the Museum on Facebook at MonLife Heritage Museums or on X @Monlife_Heritage to find out about events and courses on Art History and other subjects. Discover historical objects, works of art, photographs and documents cared for by MonLife Heritage here – https://www.monlifecollections.co.uk/