Arctic plant specimens collected by Captain Lyon It’s officially winter, drawing our minds towards one of the coldest places on earth, the Arctic Circle. Our Object of the Month for December is this selection of Arctic plant specimens from 1821 to 1823, collected by...
MillSPINDLE WHORLS FROM AMBLESIDE As the nights draw in, we find ourselves retreating indoors to stay warm, perhaps to knit, sew or crochet to pass the time. How did people make thread for these crafts in the distant past? November’s Object of the Month are these two...
Sophia Armitt’s Fungi Sketchbook It’s mushroom season, but we’re not talking about Beatrix Potter this time – our Object of the Month is this 1906 fungi sketchbook and painting owned by Sophia Armitt. Sophia was the oldest Armitt sister, born in 1847. Her father,...
Object of the Month: September 2024 September means it’s back to school – our Objects of the Month are items from former Ambleside institution the Kelsick Grammar School. We have two school pin badges decorated with its crest. It is unclear how old they are; they were...
Object of the Month: August 2024 Bill and receipt from Charles Simpson’s grocers In honour of our current exhibition on The Armitt Explores… Kurt Schwitters, August’s Object of the Month is this bill and receipt from Charles Simpson’s grocery business in Ambleside....
Object of the Month: July 2024It’s Ambleside Sports soon, which was first held 138 years ago in 1886. Therefore, we’ve picked these photos of Cumberland wrestling events as July’s Object of the Month. These photos were taken by Joseph Hardman (1893-1972). They are...
MODEL OF THE AMBLESIDE FORT As summer approaches, we’re taking a closer look at an important item related to an Ambleside landmark – this model of the Ambleside Roman Fort. The remains of the Roman fort are in Borrans Parks at Waterhead, the northern tip of...
BRONZE MORTAR For May’s Object of the Month, we’re ‘on the grind’ with this large bronze mortar from our collection. This mortar dates from 1735 and was cast in bronze. It has a decorative band around the middle, with the date and initials ‘R I’. Unfortunately, we...
BLUEBELLS Spring is here, with bluebells blooming all over Cumbria. This month we’ve chosen these gorgeous pictures of bluebells from our photography collection – unfortunately they are unnamed and undated, but they show the beautiful colour of the flowers in spring....
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH To celebrate women who fought for the right to vote, this month’s object is this photo of suffragist Amy Sharp, who lived in Ambleside and Skelwith Bridge in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, becoming a...
Valentine’s Day – GP Abraham’s postcard of a couple Happy Valentine’s Day! We are marking the occasion with this postcard of a (hopefully) happy couple, photographed by GP Abraham. George Perry Abraham was born in Devizes, Wiltshire, in 1846. He began his career as a...
ROMAN BELL FOUND IN AMBLESIDE To ring in the New Year, this month we have chosen this Roman bell excavated in Ambleside. This Roman bell has a simple hemispherical shape, with a horizontal line of decoration. It is likely Roman, as the remains of a fort are near...
THE NATIVITY IN THE CURATE'S BIBLE As the year draws to a close and we prepare for the festive season, let’s take a closer look at another object in our collection, the Ambleside Curate’s Bible, turned to the page that describes the Nativity.This is a rare edition of...
LE FLEMING PAINTING BY ROMNEY November’s Object of the Month is a recent acquisition that was added to our collection at the end of last year – a painting of Sir Michael le Fleming (1748-1806) by artist George Romney (1734-1802). The painting is of Sir Michael le...
CHAR DISH This month’s object is associated with a local delicacy – it is this char dish from our pottery collection.Arctic Char (or charr) is a type of freshwater fish found in northern upland areas, including Norway, Scotland, northern England and parts of Wales....
DOBBIN THE ROCKING HORSE When you visit our main library, you’ll find a noble steed having a well-earned rest amongst our bookshelves – Dobbin the rocking horse. Dobbin was potentially made in the mid-nineteenth century. He was originally owned by a lady from Outgate,...
VISITORS BOOK FOR THE SALUTATION INN (1858-1874) At the height of summer we’ve chosen this nineteenth-century visitors book from the Salutation Inn as our Object of the Month. Ambleside became a trading hub in 1650 when it was first granted a charter for a wool market...
FELL RUNNING AT AMBLESIDE SPORTS Our Object of the Month for July is this set of photographs from the 1980s. These pictures, taken by a ‘Mr Hoare’, show fell runners taking part in the introductory Rydal Round race at Ambleside Sports in the summers of 1986 and 1987....
Since the largest industry in the Lake District is now tourism, it can be easy to forget Cumbria’s industrial past when we travel here to enjoy the majestic scenery. Nonetheless, we have many items in The Armitt collection that hearken back to our industrial...