Left: beadwork collar of the Mpondo or Mfengu people, south-east Africa, early 20th century. Courtesy Cheltenham Museum and Art Gallery.

For the first time in its history Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum presents an opportunity for visitors to see its stunning African collections, Encounter With Africa, until February 23, 2003.

Encounter With Africa, spread over two galleries, traces the relationship between Britain and Africa over the course of six generations, through conflict, commerce and co-operation.

Right: carved wooden stool of the Asante people, Ghana, about 1900. Courtesy Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum.

Find out about a great Zulu King and his belongings, a gold miner from Cheltenham with a love for craftwork, the armoured knights of the Nigerian Savannah and their battles with the British Army, and an English woman who went to South Africa to learn traditional bead-working.

"The intimate nature of the exhibition galleries and the quality of the artefacts will make for a sensational show," said curator of the exhibition, Julien Parsons.

According to Parsons the show is a result of an on-going project to document and conserve Cheltenham's African collections, most of which were donated by ex-colonial officials and servicemen returning from Africa to retire in Cheltenham between the wars.