Titanic Exhibition To Show In Down County Museum

Titanic Honour & Glory, voted by The Times newspaper one of the top five exhibitions in the UK, is set to dock at Down County Museum as part of its Titanic centenary tour on the run up to the 100^th anniversary of the tragedy.

The exhibition, which will be open from Thursday 19 January until Sunday 15 April, has never been seen before in Ireland, and is sure to attract audiences from all over County Down and beyond. 2012 sees the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York.

A host of events will take place throughout Northern Ireland to mark the centenary of the ship which was designed by Comber’s Thomas Andrews, and built in Belfast. Down County Museum is delighted to have this exhibition in Downpatrick for the next few months and hopes that many people will take advantage of this unique opportunity to get a rare glimpse of this fine display of artefacts and information on Ireland’s most famous ship.

The brain child of Sean Szmalc and Margot Corson, Titanic Honour & Glory, is an exciting, awe inspiring and evocative national touring exhibition, which has already been visited in other parts of the country by over half a million people.  It features many rare and previously unseen artefacts from the liner’s passengers and crew. 

The excellent Titanic exhibition will draw large crowds to the Down County Museum. 

These include some of the beautiful china dinner plates, which served the first meals aboard the Titanic. Also on show, will be a fountain pen, which belonged to the captain of the Titanic.  And, perhaps most poignantly of all, visitors will also be able to see a beautiful 18 karat gold pocket watch which belonged to one of the waiters on the ship, Vincenzo Gilardino.

Together with the Titanic artefacts, the exhibition will also incorporate examples of the luxurious interiors of the Titanic’s sister ships, Olympic and Britannic, as well as a reconstructed third class cabin which shows how the many ‘steerage’ passengers on the ill-fated ship would have lived. Sean Szmalc’s fascination with the Titanic began when, at the age of five, he saw the film A Night to Remember. 

He and Margot Corson have been amassing their truly awe-inspiring collection ever since.  Sean comments, “This diverse exhibition appeals to so many people from all age groups.   With the exhibition we aim to increase the knowledge of Titanic’s history, that of her sister ships and the White Star Line, which owned and operated many of what were the finest liners that had ever sailed the oceans of the world.  Each individual visitor to the exhibition will get a feeling of what it was like to have been on Titanic.”

Admission to the exhibition is free and the Museum is open daily, from 10am to 5pm on weekdays and from 1pm to 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

In addition to the exhibition the Museum is also organising Titanic themed craft activities for children on Saturday 28 January, Saturday 4 February, Saturday 31 March and Saturday 14 April 2012. These drop-in workshops will last from 1.30pm to 4.30pm and cost £3 per child. Contact the Museum on 028 4461 5218 for more details.

Down County Museum is also holding special workshop for schools available from 19 January to 14 April. This workshop takes pupils through the exhibition and also includes a handling session focusing on artefacts and information from County Down in the period 1910 -1914. Activities are suitable for Key Stage 2 pupils. The Museum is already taking bookings from schools so teachers are urged to book places as soon as possible. 

Titanic Honour & Glory, voted by The Times newspaper one of the top five exhibitions in the UK, is set to dock at Down County Museum as part of its Titanic centenary tour on the run up to the 100^th anniversary of the tragedy. The exhibition, which will be open from Thursday 19 January until Sunday 15 April, has never been seen before in Ireland, and is sure to attract audiences from all over County Down and beyond.

2012 sees the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. A host of events will take place throughout Northern Ireland to mark the centenary of the ship which was designed by Comber’s Thomas Andrews, and built in Belfast. Down County Museum is delighted to have this exhibition in Downpatrick for the next few months and hopes that many people will take advantage of this unique opportunity to get a rare glimpse of this fine display of artefacts and information on Ireland’s most famous ship.

The brain child of Sean Szmalc and Margot Corson, Titanic Honour & Glory, is an exciting, awe inspiring and evocative national touring exhibition, which has already been visited in other parts of the country by over half a million people.  It features many rare and previously unseen artefacts from the liner’s passengers and crew. 

These include some of the beautiful china dinner plates, which served the first meals aboard the Titanic. Also on show, will be a fountain pen, which belonged to the captain of the Titanic.  And, perhaps most poignantly of all, visitors will also be able to see a beautiful 18 karat gold pocket watch which belonged to one of the waiters on the ship, Vincenzo Gilardino.

Together with the Titanic artefacts, the exhibition will also incorporate examples of the luxurious interiors of the Titanic’s sister ships, Olympic and Britannic, as well as a reconstructed third class cabin which shows how the many ‘steerage’ passengers on the ill-fated ship would have lived. Sean Szmalc’s fascination with the Titanic began when, at the age of five, he saw the film A Night to Remember.  He and Margot Corson have been amassing their truly awe-inspiring collection ever since. 

Sean said, “This diverse exhibition appeals to so many people from all age groups.   With the exhibition we aim to increase the knowledge of Titanic’s history, that of her sister ships and the White Star Line, which owned and operated many of what were the finest liners that had ever sailed the oceans of the world.  Each individual visitor to the exhibition will get a feeling of what it was like to have been on Titanic.”

Admission to the exhibition is free and the Museum is open daily, from 10am to 5pm on weekdays and from 1pm to 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

In addition to the exhibition the Museum is also organising Titanic themed craft activities for children on Saturday 28 January, Saturday 4 February, Saturday 31 March and Saturday 14 April 2012. These drop-in workshops will last from 1.30pm to 4.30pm and cost £3 per child.

Contact the Museum on 028 4461 5218 for more details.

Down County Museum is also holding special workshop for schools available from 19 January to 14 April. This workshop takes pupils through the exhibition and also includes a handling session focusing on artefacts and information from County Down in the period 1910 -1914. Activities are suitable for Key Stage 2 pupils. The Museum is already taking bookings from schools so teachers are urged to book places as soon as possible.