With a brand new tour offering the ‘Freedom of Waterford’, the stunning collection of museums in Ireland’s oldest city has now reopened.
The Waterford Treasures collection of five museums tells the fascinating story of a city sitting in the heart of Ireland’s Ancient East.
Founded by the Vikings in 914, Waterford was once one of the great ports of Ireland and is famous today for the esteemed Waterford Crystal factory, the fabulous Waterford Greenway, and particularly its history and culture-laden Viking Triangle.
The Viking Triangle is crowned by Reginald’s Tower, Ireland’s oldest civic building, and the Viking feel of the city is still palpable in some of its medieval streets, which encompass practically every period of architecture to have come to Waterford since the arrival of the Vikings.
Norse invaders had a significant impact not just on Waterford, but the whole of Ireland, and the country’s rich Viking history is even being introduced to a whole new audience through a newly released video game, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla / Wrath of the Druids Ireland extension.
Opportunities to learn about Waterford’s Vikings foundations, to be inspired by medieval wonders and to experience elegant Georgian architecture are all part of the highlights of the Freedom of Waterford guided walking tour.
In the company of one of the expert guides at Waterford Treasures you will unpack the 1,000-year history of Waterford all within 1,000 paces in the city centre.
Following the walking tour, your ticket lets you go on to take a deep dive into your favourite era of Ireland’s heritage, with complete access to the Viking Triangle’s Medieval Museum and Bishop’s Palace Museum, as well as the brand new Irish Museum of Time and the Irish Silver Museum.
Step back into thirteen and fifteenth-century Waterford at the Medieval Museum where you can explore the atmospheric underground Choristers’ Hall and the fifteenth-century Mayors Wine Vault. An exhibition here highlights the medieval Cloth-of-Gold Vestments and the 1373 Great Charter Roll of Waterford – viewed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Ireland.
The Bishop’s Palace Museum is an authentic eighteenth-century grand Georgian residence built in 1743, which is also home to the oldest surviving piece of Waterford Crystal in the world. A spectacular 4D ‘Masterpieces in Glass’, taking in the story of glassmaking, is included in the Freedom of Waterford ticket.
The Irish Silver Museum offers a journey through history using beautiful, intimate and personal objects as a guide to the fascinating story of Ireland and its ostentatious past, while the Irish Museum of Time, located in a gothic-style church, houses what is beyond doubt the finest collection of Irish timepieces in the world.
The Waterford Treasures museum collection is back as part of Ireland’s gradual re-opening. Following the lifting of restrictions, most galleries, museums, heritage sites and other cultural attractions opened their doors again on 10 May.
www.ireland.com
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