Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum
Opening hours:
Monday-Saturday
9.30am-4pm
How to find us:
Market Square,
Lisburn
BT28 1AG
028 9266 3377
Ilc.reception@lisburncastlereagh.gov.uk
Who are we?
A trip to Lisburn is not complete without a visit to the museum! Located in Market Square, the historic centre of the city, the Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn is a museum dedicated to the history of Lisburn, the Lagan Valley and the Irish Linen industry. Founded in 1979, over the past 40 years we have built a vast collection of objects, archives and ephemera related to the local area and the linen industry. We are not a dusty cabinet of curiosities; we offer an annual programme of events and activities for all ages!
What we do?
Entry is free and during your visit you can explore our art, textile and local history collections through a range of temporary exhibitions, or discover the history of Irish linen in our permanent exhibition ‘Flax to Fabric’. Here you can enjoy spinning demonstrations – and even have a go! – or watch the weaving of fine linen damask on our 19th-century handlooms! For an up-to-date list of current exhibitions visit www.lisburnmuseum.com/whats-on-events
We hold an internationally-significant collection and attract visitors from all around the world, but we are a museum deeply rooted in the local community and offer a wide range of ground-breaking community engagement initiatives. This includes:
- Bring your group for a free guided-tour of the museum and exhibitions, as well as historic and nature trails of Lisburn and Castle Gardens
- Join our hugely-successful schools programme attracting over 6000 children annually. This includes tours and workshops on topics such as the Great War, WWII, Ancient Egypt, Science and Irish Linen.
- Enjoy our annual autumn talks series, and a range of seasonal events, workshops and activities for community groups, schools and families.
- A pioneering under-5’s programme, including our annual Flaxie Buds Bonanza festival!
- Bring the museum to you with our free Out-and-About loan boxes
Our education service is unique in its ‘shared-authority’ approach, and offers participants opportunities to create bespoke programming. For more information on our approach, our programmes and the education and learning service visit lisburnmuseum.com/learning
Visitors can explore local history, our programmes and our collection at our award-wining Virtual Museum. And, for those keen to explore Lisburn, linen and the wider Lagan Valley, we offer a free research service.
Finally, trips to the museum are not complete without a visit to our shop, which is one of the few places you can buy Irish linen, alongside crafts, jewellery and local history books.
For more opening times, the latest news and current exhibitions please visit lisburnmuseum.com