The Salisbury Museum

The museum and the collection

The New Wessex Gallery at the Salisbury Museum and Art Gallery is the largest project in the museum’s history. Designed to present 5,000 years of the history of Wessex, the gallery houses over 50 display cases of all shapes and sizes, specifically created to present the museum’s amazing archaeological collection in a stimulating and exciting way.

The assignment

The showcases are opened and controlled from central points through a highly integrated security system. The scissor lift cases are large table cases that use hydraulic engineering. This technology allows staff to easily open and close the cases in order to achieve a maximum access to the objects. A temporary exhibition case has many different internal options, which ensures that future displays can be presented in various ways, providing museum staff with real flexibility. The case designs had to incorporate the mounting of GRC plinths.

Many of the recessed wall cases have a graphic back panel that is a continuation of the larger surrounding graphic panel on the wall. Glass shelves, mounting panels and recessed display panels are mounted upon these back panels. The external bases of the central and wall cases are clad with glass reinforced concrete that subtly evokes connections with the rich Wessex archaeology on display.

The project: challenges & result

The collaboration between designers, the main contractor Realm and Meyvaert was extremely successful and this is very evident in the result.

“In this unique and exciting gallery the project team has truly created a shrine to Wessex archaeology.”
Phil Harding, Time Team