A pottery to rival Belleek?
Sometime between 1897 - 1900 potters from the Belleek factory in Co Fermanagh established a small factory near Coalisland, Co Tyrone. They manufactured a range of vessels similar to Belleek porcelain. Several of these beautifully decorated cups and jugs have found their way into the collection.Ex...

A strange bronze object
Is it a hand grenade?One of the most unusual objects on display is often mistaken for a hand grenade. It is in fact not a weapon but possibly a musical percussion instrument.Known as a 'crotal', most of these objects were all found in one hoard from Dowris in Co Offaly (dating to around 800BC). T...

American General Store
The general store was a basic part of the economy of the early community. As emigrants flocked to the New World, the store provided a source of goods to isolated settlements.The general store was much more than that - it provided a market for local farm surplus which was used to barter for items ...

Ancient Egypt
Takabuti (The Egyptian Mummy) lived during the 25th dynasty c660BC. She came to the museum in 1834 and was unwrapped in February 1835. She is located in the Life & Death of Ancient Egypt Gallery(13).The mummy of the lady Takabuti and her case represent the Egyptian collection of some 2000 o...

Armachiana
The heading 'Armachiana', found in several display cases at the Museum, is a general term used to indicate that the information and objects relate to the development of Armagh city and county. Although the site has been occupied since Neolithic times, the city’s foundation is traditionally ...

Baird's Print Shop
In the days long before photocopiers and digital printers, many Ulster towns had a jobbing printer.  Their job was to cater for the printing requirements of local institutions, businesses, politicians, clergy and local government.They printed everything from billheads, dockets and labels for...

Basketmaking
Baskets were the cardboard packaging and plastic crates of their day. They provided a cheap, practical, disposable and readily renewable range of containers for industry, home and farm (get closer by clicking the images).Baskets were used to store and transport, apples, potatoes, coal, textiles, ...

Belleek
The Belleek factory was founded in 1857, in an area rich in the raw materials necessary to make porcelain as well as earthenware and stoneware.It originally traded as McBirney & Co and produced a wide range of domestic earthenware. Once technical problems had been overcome the factory began t...

Blacksmith
Blacksmithing was a skilled occupation. As well as shoeing horses, making tools and equipment was an important aspect of the trade. As with other crafts, the number of blacksmiths peaked in the 1800s.Population and industry were rising and most products were locally made. However, as mass pr...

Blacksmiths Forge
The country blacksmith was of vital importance to the agricultural community, both as a farrier who shod and cared for horses and as a manufacturer and repairer of agricultural implements. The forge reproduced in the Folk Park is typical of those which were once found throughout rural Ulster.&nbs...