What's On
Temporary exhibitions:
Black History Month - October 2023:
‘Charles Lawrence (1919-1941): Dartford’s Black War Hero’. An insight into the life of a Black Dartfordian, who fought in the Second World War but was captured and then died in a Prisoner of War camp.
Pageantry and Parties: Dartford’s Royal Celebrations Over The Years:
This exhibition looks at the variety of celebrations and commemorations which have been held in Dartford in relation to Coronations and Jubilees since the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887, our earliest evidence for such events.
The exhibition consists of information obtained from official souvenir programmes and subsequent newspaper reports, photographs of the parties, parades and associated decorations in the town centre, as well as a collection of numerous souvenir objects, consisting of mugs, books and medals, given to local children over the years.
Permanent Exhibitions:
The main display cases in Dartford Borough Museum run anti-clockwise around the gallery and follow the chronological story of the Borough of Dartford as revealed by archaeology, with additional social history items for more recent periods:
Stone Age:
This contains information on the Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age), Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) and Neolithic (New Stone Age) periods. The Palaeolithic material relates to the important local site of Barnfield Pit, Swanscombe, where the 400,000 year old Swanscombe Skull was discovered in three pieces in 1935, 1936 and 1955. A cast of the skull is on display, along with actual flint tools and animal remains from the period. The other material in the case includes Mesolithic flint tools, some known as Thames Picks, and polished Neolithic flint axes.
Bronze Age – Iron Age:
This includes the Leyton Cross Bronze Age Hoard, consisting of two axe-heads, a knife blade and a razor. Other Bronze Age tools and weapons are also on show. The Iron Age is covered by pottery, brooches and iron tools.
Roman Kitchen:
This is arranged in the style of the work surface of a Roman kitchen, using a mixture of replica food and tools together with real Roman pottery and glassware.
Roman Life:
This features a variety of everyday objects such as oil lamps, brooches and weights found on local sites.
Anglo-Saxon:
This shows the variety of jewellery, brooches and bead necklaces, which were found on the 5th-7th century cemetery site at Riseley.
Darenth Bowl:
This is the finest moulded glass vessel of 5th century date in England, and the only bowl in the country with a Christian Chi-Rho monogram and inscription. It was probably made in Belgium c. AD 450 although it was discovered in a 6th century pagan grave in what is now Darenth Country Park. (Unfortunately the Darenth Bowl is not currently on display but will return soon).
Norman:
This consists of a model showing the building of Holy Trinity Church c.1080. In addition, there is also a description of what Dartford (or Tarentefort) was like at the time of the Domesday Book.
Medieval:
This features, amongst other things, medieval pottery, stonework, a lead seal matrix and a document dated 1474 which relates to Dartford Priory.
Kerr's Shop:
This is a reconstruction of a draper's shop which once existed in the High Street. The shop counter, storage cabinet and cash register are all original but the most important, and most popular, part of the display is the overhead cash railway. This is an ingenious device which was used for catapulting cash containers along wires from one end of the shop to the other.
Dartford Warbler:
A display on the small bird which was first discovered and recorded in the vicinity of the town by Dr John Latham in 1773. It is one of only two species of bird to be named after a British town.