Visiting the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford | The World's First University Museum

The Ashmolean museum, founded in 1683, is the University of Oxford’s museum of art and archaeology. Located on Beaumont Street (opposite Macdonald Randolph Hotel), it is the world's first university museum and is home to the biggest collection of Raphael drawings in the world. The museum also boasts of an impressive collection of Egyptian sculpture and ceramics, Anglo-Saxon treasures, Majolica pottery and the greatest Chinese collection in the West.

We managed to miss this museum on our last visit to Oxford, so this weekend when we were in Oxford we made it a point to set aside some time for the Ashmolean. And we are glad we did. The museum has a sizeable collection and many of the displays are highly interesting. We spent a couple of hours looking at the galleries that interested us and it was lovely. Some of Ashmolean's galleries include: 19th-century Art, Ancient Egypt & Nubia, Cast Gallery, Chinese Paintings, Indian Gallery, European Ceramics, Music & Tapestry, Pre-Raphaelites, Still-life Paintings and West meets East. The museum also hosts a changing programme of major international exhibitions. It is a lovely museum and well a worth a visit if you are visiting Oxford.

Plan your visit | Location and opening hours

Ashmolean Museum
Beaumont St
Oxford
OX1 2PH

Museum Opening Hours

10am to 5pm Tuesday – Sunday (Closed on Mondays)
Open on Bank Holiday Mondays 10am – 5pm

Admission is free.