Museum of Somerset, Local museum in Taunton Castle, England.
The Museum of Somerset is housed within Taunton Castle and displays objects organized across nine themed galleries spanning the area's history. The collections range from prehistoric times to the modern era, revealing how the region developed through different periods.
The castle was founded in the 12th century as a fortification and administrative center for the region. The Somerset Archaeological Society converted it into a public museum in 1874, transforming it from a military structure into a space for sharing local knowledge.
The collection displays regional discoveries that show how people lived and worked across different periods. Artifacts like mosaics and metalwork offer insight into the daily lives and beliefs of past inhabitants.
The museum is centrally located at Castle Green in Taunton and is easy to reach on foot. Plan for one to two hours to walk through all the galleries, and weekdays tend to be less crowded than weekends.
The museum holds a Plesiosaur fossil dating back 200 million years and a prehistoric Banwell Bear skull. These remarkable finds come from caves in Somerset and tell the story of ancient creatures that inhabited the region long before humans arrived.
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