News

Jim Bennett (1947–2023)

10 November 2023

Jim Bennett, pre-eminent historian of scientific instruments, former Curator of the Whipple Museum, former Fellow and Senior Tutor of Churchill College, internationally celebrated curator and museum director, has died in Oxford at the age of 76. James Arthur Bennett—always Jim to his friends—was born on 2 April 1947. After...

Craftswomen Exhibition wins BSHS Prize

4 May 2023

We are delighted to announce that Craftswomen , our latest exhibition, has won the British Society for the History of Science Exhibiting Excellence Prize 2023 ! The judges were particularly impressed by the way the exhibition knitted HSTM scholarship into the content of the exhibition; foregrounding the stories of women...

Craftswomen exhibition in the Main Gallery

Craftswomen: Uncovering Hidden Labour in the History of Science

24 August 2022

Craftswomen is a new exhibition at the Whipple Museum exploring the work of women in the British instrument trade between the 17th and 19th centuries. It exposes the often unseen work of the ‘craftswomen’ who made instruments for measuring, modelling and investigating the world. There are many famous women in the history...

Flyer of exhibition for doctrine of signatures

Doctrine of Signatures Exhibition online

2 August 2022

Please check out Xinyi Wen's online Doctrine of Signatures Exhibition , which was hosted by the Whipple Museum earlier this year. A walnut looks like a brain, and therefore could perhaps cure brain diseases — today, a traditional medicinal idea called ‘the doctrine of signatures’ is widely cited in contemporary pharmacy...

Display case on testing air before Covid

Measuring Air Before Covid

8 December 2021

Featuring industrial tools and a creature called a ‘Dragoyle’, our new display on Measuring Air Before Covid showcases scientific instruments used to test ventilation. During the Covid-19 pandemic, increasing ventilation has been important in reducing transmission. Measuring instruments previously used in mines and...

A volunteer shows a child how to use a sextant

The Whipple Museum from Home

14 January 2021

Although we are currently closed to visitors, you can still enjoy the Whipple Museum from home in the following ways: Search and browse through records and images of close to 7,000 objects, as well as records of our Trade Literature. Access our collections portal here . Enjoy a virtual tour of the Museum's 75th anniversary...

Tools of Knowledge

5 January 2021

From January, the AHRC is funding the project 'Tools of Knowledge: Modelling the Creative Communities of the Scientific Instrument Trade, 1550-1914', based in the Whipple Museum. Working with an interdisciplinary team, 'Tools of Knowledge' will apply cutting-edge methods of digital analysis to data on almost four centuries...

A perfect Whipple-themed gift!

12 November 2020

A new range of Henslow-themed products has been launched at the University's ' Curating Cambridge ' online shop. Combining science and art, items from this new Henslow range make the perfect gift for those with an eye for the unusual. During his tenure as Professor of Botany at the University of Cambridge, Henslow (1796 -...

Launch of Online Collections Portal

4 November 2020

The Whipple Museum collections are now fully online! Like other museums, only a small proportion of our collection is on display at any one time and, in the current public health situation, physical access to museums has become very challenging. But now you can search and browse through records and images of close to 7,000...

Summer with the Museums

28 July 2020

This year we're bringing the museums to you! Normally, the summer is a busy time for museums with all sorts of family events and activities happening throughout the holidays. This year, although many of our museums are not open to visitors just yet, you can still enjoy some museum-themed fun. See the University of...

Opening Times

Please note that our lift is currently out of action and we do not have a step-free entrance.

Our maintenance unit is dealing with this urgently, and we hope to resolve within the next two weeks.

We are open five days a week, 12.30 - 16:30.

Monday 12.30 - 16:30

Tuesday 12.30 - 16:30

Wednesday 12.30 - 16:30

Thursday 12.30 - 16:30

Friday 12.30 - 16:30

We hope to see you soon!

Forthcoming events

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