Visit Us

Shetland Museum & Archives is open. Drop in and visit us, no booking is necessary.

Free to visit - As always, entry to the Museum and Archives is free but now more than ever we need your support - please consider making a donation.

View our full opening times

Inside Visit Us

CLOSED

It is with regret that we announce the closure of 'Hay's Dock by The Dowry', which was operated by Beervana Ltd. Unfortunately, despite efforts to remain open, securing the necessary staff has not been possible which has resulted in a mutual end of t...

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Tours

Make the most of your visit with us and join us on a tour to ensure you see the highlights of our museum and our Recognised Collections.

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Crofthouse Museum

The Shetland Crofthouse Museum is now closed for the season and will reopen in May 2025.

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Galleries

Visit our Museum Galleries

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Archives Searchroom

Visit the Archives searchroom

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Gift Shop

Our gift shop offers a range of products which are inspired by the Museum and Archive collections, and reflect and celebrate Shetland's unique culture and heritage.

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Activities

Whatever your reason for visiting us at Shetland Museum and Archives, there are a range of activities on offer to ensure you can make the most of your time with us.

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Hay's Dock

Shetland Museum and Archives sits on Hay’s Dock; the last remaining area of original dock on the Lerwick waterfront, which is now category B listed. This is a perfect setting to highlight the strong heritage connection with the sea, and display just some of the traditional Shetland boats in the collection.

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Public Art

Shetland Amenity Trust commissioned over 60 individual artworks as part of its Shetland Museum and Archives Public Art Project. These are on show throughout the building and dock, some even appearing alongside the artefacts and documents in the galleries and Archives.

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Accessibility

We want to make sure we continue to offer an excellent experience for all visitors with additional needs .

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Visit Us Blog Posts

Anniversary Events

Staff gathered for an official photo as the anniversary celebrations begin.

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A Summer of Anniversaries

Shetland Museum and Archives services are celebrating significant milestone anniversaries this summer.

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Shetland Boat Week Launched Today

The first Shetland Boat Week will take place between 8th and 14th August.

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New to Us Exhibition

A display of 'new to us' art is on display throughout the galleries and will be updated regularly during 2016/17.

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New Website Launched

Shetland Museum and Archives has, today, launched a new website.

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Photos in a Flash - Instant Photo Printing

Visitors to Shetland Museum and Archives can now access instant prints from a wide range of popular photo archive images from the ...

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Reid Tait Collection transferred to Shetland Archives

Shetland Archives has recently received the last of a large and significant collection of printed material from Shetland Library, in a ...

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P&O Flag flies at Bod

The P&O flag is again flying at the Bὂd of Gremista, following an appeal from Shetland Amenity Trust Vice Chairman, Captain George ...

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Take a Virtual Tour of Fethaland

A new interactive visitor experience has been installed at Shetland Museum and Archives, which allows the user to take a stroll ...

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BBC Sound Booth comes to Shetland Museum and Archives

Shetland Museum and Archives is pleased to be taking part in the BBC Listening Project Tour.

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Archaeological Artefacts Return

Over 100,000 archaeological artefacts have been returned to Shetland for inclusion in the Recognised Archaeology Collection of ...

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Shetland's Sunken Treasure - Unveiled!

A new exhibition has been unveiled at Shetland Museum and Archives. The two displays, located outside the archives showcase finds from ...

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Breaking The Mould

After 240 years a rare Fetlar bronze armlet, will return home to Shetland for a museum exhibition from 16 November 2014 to 20 January ...

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Essential repairs commence on Nil Desperandum

Following a successful request for volunteers by the Shetland Amenity Trust, essential repair work has begun at Hay’s Dock to the ...

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Gold Standard Maintained

Shetland Amenity Trust and one of its core services, the Shetland Museum and Archives, have both, again, achieved Gold Standards in ...

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