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What’s On

Find out what’s on at our venues across Durham. From major exhibitions to family friendly craft sessions, tours, lectures and art workshops. We have something to interest everyone. You can also find out more about our regular groups and online exhibitions and events.
Group of people at an exhibition

Special exhibitions

Explore exciting events and exhibitions across our venues.

Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki

This moving exhibition highlights the devastation wreaked by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
Remains of cathedral in landscape devastated by nuclear blast

Throwing it out there: the archaeology of ritual, rivers and rubbish

Explore the rich ritual history of the rivers of County Durham. Featuring local objects from the Bronze Age to the medieval period and beyond.
range of small objects surrounded by blue shapes to denote a river

Photographing Tutankhamun

This exhibition explores how photography turned Tutankhamun into a global sensation.
Tutankhamun face mask
View more

Upcoming events

Interesting X-Rays

Saturday 10 June, 2023
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Oriental Museum
Image of an a mummified cat from Ancient Egypt, bound in bandages.

Twilight Opening at Oriental Museum

Thursday 15 June, 2023
5:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Oriental Museum
Overhead view of the galleries in the Oriental Museum

Taotie Mask Making

Saturday 17 June, 2023
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Oriental Museum
Image of a carved jade Chinese ornament with a carved Taotie face into the surface. The face is that of a geometrical daemon, originating in Shang Dynasty China

Twilight Talk: Throwing it Out There: Creating an Exhibition

Thursday 22 June, 2023
5:45 PM to 6:45 PM
Museum of Archaeology, Historic Libraries, Durham World Heritage Site Visitor Centre
A photograph of a group of students.
More upcoming events

Online exhibitions

Explore our collections from home with our online exhibition programme.

Journeys: Reading the World

Explore themes of travel, adventure and exploration using the rare books, diaries, maps and letters in Palace Green Library special collections.
Collage image of items included in the Journeys exhibition, including a giant from Gulliver’s Travels, a tourist with binoculars, Notre Dame Cathedral, a plane, a world map, three arctic explorers and an aeroplane.

Hidden Stories From the River Wear

Explore the collections of underwater archaeologist, Gary Bankhead, in an exhibition by students from Durham University.
River Wear Exhibition logo showing outline of the river and map of Durham from above

Taxila in Focus: 100 years Since Marshall

This exhibition focuses on the ancient site of Taxila, around 32 kilometres from Pakistan’s federal capital, Islamabad.
Half of the image is in black and white, showing the site in the early 20th century. The other half is a colour 21st century image.
View more online exhibitions

Join our Friends

Our Botanic Garden, Oriental Museum and Palace Green Library all have Friends organisations which organise events and lectures including special members-only experiences.

A group of people stood examining a piece of artwork

Regular activities

Durham University Library and Collections offer a range of fun, engaging and accessible workshops, resources and experiences for people of all ages.

  • Creative Age

    Creative Age is a free, weekly art group for people living with dementia or other long-term health challenges and their carers.
    Journey, a collaborative artwork made by the Creative Age group and artist Marián Hernandez Villada.

  • Durham Archaeology Explorers

    Our archaeology club for children aged 7 - 11, meeting monthly at the Oriental Museum as well as trips to local archaeological and heritage sites.
    Child in high-vis jacket taking part in Durham Archaeology Explorers

  • Little Dragons

    Come along to Little Dragons under-fives group and explore the Oriental Museum's fantastic collections and exhibitions.
    Toddler enjoying Little Dragons under-fives session

Creative Age

Creative Age is a free, weekly art group for people living with dementia or other long-term health challenges and their carers.
Journey, a collaborative artwork made by the Creative Age group and artist Marián Hernandez Villada.

Durham Archaeology Explorers

Our archaeology club for children aged 7 - 11, meeting monthly at the Oriental Museum as well as trips to local archaeological and heritage sites.
Child in high-vis jacket taking part in Durham Archaeology Explorers

Little Dragons

Come along to Little Dragons under-fives group and explore the Oriental Museum's fantastic collections and exhibitions.
Toddler enjoying Little Dragons under-fives session
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