Museum of Archaeology

Bronze Age Handling Box

The Role of the Museum

The Role of the Museum

What is the National Museum of Ireland’s Mission?

The mission of the National Museum of Ireland is to collect, care for, manage and interpret the collections while making them accessible as a source of learning and enjoyment for a wide range of diverse audiences.

What is the role of the National Museum of Ireland?

The National Museum of Ireland has been the custodian of 10,000 years of Ireland’s portable heritage and natural history since 1877. The National Museum of Ireland preserves and conserves where appropriate the heritage of the nation, provides public access to the national collections, educates and raises awareness of our natural environment, culture and history, and undertakes academic research. Providing the public with learning opportunities to meaningfully engage with the Collections is a key role of the Museum. The Museum welcomes over a million visitors each year.

What is in the National Museum of Ireland's Collections?

The Collections cover archaeology; decorative and applied arts; history; ethnography; folklife and natural history. They convey a rich and diverse tapestry of human experience.

What is in the Archaeological Collection?

The National Museum of Ireland is the national repository for all archaeological objects found in Ireland. It holds in trust for the nation and the world a series of outstanding archaeological collections spanning millennia of Irish history and also holds extensive collections of non-Irish antiquities. The Museum houses artefacts ranging in date from 7000 BC to the late medieval period and beyond. On display are prehistoric gold artefacts, metalwork from the Celtic Iron Age, Viking artefacts and medieval ecclesiastical objects and jewellery, as well as rich collections of ancient Egyptian and Cypriot material.

Where is the National Museum of Ireland located?

The National Museum of Ireland has four public sites: three in Dublin – Kildare Street (Archaeology); Collins Barracks (Decorative Arts and History); Merrion Street (Natural History) and Turlough Park, Castlebar Co Mayo (Country Life). The National Museum of Ireland is developing a Collections Resource Centre at Swords, Co Dublin to house its collections.

The Bronze Age Handling Box Resource Project was developed by: