Admission charges
Admission to Millennium Galleries is free, except for special exhibitions.
Description
Step into one
of Sheffield’s
architectural treasures,
the award winning
Millennium Galleries,
an inspiring venue in
heart of the city
centre.
Our dynamic exhibition programme brings
masterpieces from national galleries to the city
and is the key place to find out about Sheffield's
world famous metalwork industry. You can
discover how the industry grew in Sheffield and
see an amazing range of objects that have been
designed and made by the city's skilled
craftspeople. There are interactive exhibits to
encourage visitors of all ages and abilities to
participate and explore the collection further.
You’ll also find a changing exhibitions of contemporary craft
and design alongside an original collection gathered by one
of the most eminent figures of the Victorian Age: artist and
writer John Ruskin. The collection attracts visitors from all over the world and contains one of the largest holdings of
ornithological prints outside the Natural History Museum in
London.
Relax and refresh in Cafe Azure, or take a stroll in the
adjacent exotic Winter Garden, where you can see 2,000
tropical plants in one of the largest temperate glasshouses in Britain. Find that specialist art magazine in our newly
refurbished and expanded gallery shop and indulge in a
wide range of original and luxury gifts, books, greeting
cards and toys.
Collections description
The Metalwork Gallery contains over 1,000 items from Sheffield's designated metalwork collection. The collection is made up of cutlery, flatware and hollowware made in the city, together with an outstanding selection of comparative material from Europe and many parts of Africa and Asia. It includes silver, pewter, stainless steel and Old Sheffield Plate and is the best collection of its kind in this country and almost certainly the world. The collection dates from the 14th century to the present day and includes unique, handcrafted one-off pieces and examples of the mass-produced cutlery for which Sheffield has an international reputation.
The Ruskin Gallery is home to the impressive Guild of St. George Collection which contains an array of paintings, drawings, photographs, books, and minerals, all of which illustrate the beauty of the natural world or the skill of craftsman and artists. An exquisite painting of St Mark’s in Venice by J.W. Bunney, medieval illuminated manuscripts and detailed botanical drawings can be seen in the gallery alongside large plaster casts of architectural features from ancient buildings and beautiful minerals such as opal and ameythyst. The collection was brought together by John Ruskin (1819 - 1900), a renowned Victorian writer, artist, and critic who had a major impact on nineteenth century thinking. In 1875 Ruskin established a small museum in Sheffield so that the ‘working men’ would be able to enjoy and benefit from seeing this wide-ranging collection. Since then the Ruskin Gallery has had various homes in Sheffield; Meersbrook Park, the Hays building on Norfolk Street and now the Millennium Galleries.
Key artists and exhibits
The Millennium Galleries has 2 temporary exhibition spaces. The Special Exhibition Gallery shows blockbuster exhibitions from national galleries and museums such as the V&A, Tate and the National Portrait Gallery. The craft and Design Gallery shows the best in contemporary craft and design.
