Jersey Museum, Jersey, United Kingdom

The Jersey Museum and Art Gallery is located in St Helier. It presents history from 250,000 years ago when the first people arrived in Jersey and continues through the centuries to explore the factors that have shaped this unique island and the people who live there. Find out why Jersey remained loyal to the English Crown despite being so close to France; listen to Jersey-French being spoken; learn about the Island's traditional farming industry and watch fascinating archive footage of the early years of tourism.

On display in the Art Gallery you will find the work of Claude Cahun, recognised worldwide as one of the leading artists of the Surrealist movement. Jersey Museum cares for one of the largest collections of Cahun's work, which comprises photographs, original manuscripts, first editions, books and other personal material. Find out more about Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore.

References:

Jersey Heritage

User Reviews

David and Janet Healey (3 months ago)
Very interesting, giving a good overview of Jersey history. We enjoyed the film of the Jersey story and found the Merchants' House fascinating.

June Haycox (4 months ago)
Had a wonderful day at Jersey Museum. Lots to see. Staff friendly and very helpful.

Ian Pace (4 months ago)
Well presented museum with a mix of audio and video areas alongside the traditional galleries. Great cafe on the ground floor which becomes a restaurant in the evenings. Good video wall showing an aerial tour of the island.

Tim Brown (4 months ago)
A great place to start your visit to Jersey. In the foyer there is a very nice cafe and restaurant. Great cake! There is a film of the landscape of the Island. In a theatre off the foyer there is a very well put together film of the history of Jersey. Well worth seeing. The museum itself covers the history of Jersey and also has an exhibition of 1980s Jersey and Bergerac. Attached is the merchant's house: a very atmospheric interpretation. The whole thing is worth seeing: museum, merchant's house, films, cafe and restaurant.

Martin Oakley (9 months ago)
Regular visitors to the museum when we go to Jersey. The layout and information is superb. The ground floor has changed for us with an excellent aerial photography of the island and better shop. The first floor museum is a brilliant view of the island, occupation years, life at the time and geology. The second floor has a Bergerac exhibition which is fascinating even if you weren't around or a fan of the series. Like all the Jersey Heritage sites on the island they are really well presented.

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Church of Our Lady before Týn

The Church of Our Lady before Týn is a dominant feature of the Old Town of Prague and has been the main church of this part of the city since the 14th century. The church's towers are 80 m high and topped by four small spires.

In the 11th century, this area was occupied by a Romanesque church, which was built there for foreign merchants coming to the nearby Týn Courtyard. Later it was replaced by an early Gothic Church of Our Lady before Týn in 1256. Construction of the present church began in the 14th century in the late Gothic style under the influence of Matthias of Arras and later Peter Parler. By the beginning of the 15th century, construction was almost complete; only the towers, the gable and roof were missing. The church was controlled by Hussites for two centuries, including John of Rokycan, future archbishop of Prague, who became the church's vicar in 1427. The roof was completed in the 1450s, while the gable and northern tower were completed shortly thereafter during the reign of George of Poděbrady (1453–1471). His sculpture was placed on the gable, below a huge golden chalice, the symbol of the Hussites. The southern tower was not completed until 1511, under architect Matěj Rejsek.

After the lost Battle of White Mountain (1620) began the era of harsh recatholicisation (part of the Counter-Reformation). Consequently, the sculptures of 'heretic king' George of Poděbrady and the chalice were removed in 1626 and replaced by a sculpture of the Virgin Mary, with a giant halo made from by melting down the chalice. In 1679 the church was struck by lightning, and the subsequent fire heavily damaged the old vault, which was later replaced by a lower baroque vault.

Renovation works carried out in 1876–1895 were later reversed during extensive exterior renovation works in the years 1973–1995. Interior renovation is still in progress.

The northern portal is a wonderful example of Gothic sculpture from the Parler workshop, with a relief depicting the Crucifixion. The main entrance is located on the church's western face, through a narrow passage between the houses in front of the church.

The early baroque altarpiece has paintings by Karel Škréta from around 1649. The oldest pipe organ in Prague stands inside this church. The organ was built in 1673 by Heinrich Mundt and is one of the most representative 17th-century organs in Europe.

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Church of Our Lady before Týn

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