Museum collections
One of the aims of our Arts and Heritage Service is to
collect, conserve and care for artefacts, documents and works of
art for the borough.
You can discover the Arts and Heritage Service Collections in
the award winning Touchstones Rochdale and in outreach displays
across the borough.
As from 1 April 2007 the Arts & Heritage
Service has transferred to Link4Life, the trading name for the
Rochdale Boroughwide Cultural Trust. To discover more about
Rochdale Borough's fascinating arts and heritage please visit the
link4life website.
Link4life - Trading name
The Museum collections includes:
- Archaeology
- Egyptology
- Natural Sciences
- Egyptology
- Social History
- Decorative Arts
- Costume and Textiles
Gallery collections
The first work was donated to the town in 1898 and displayed in
the public library, prior to the foundation of the current art
gallery
The majority of the collection was donated by local people,
especially industrialists in the early years of this century, or
purchased from funds bequeathed to the Gallery. The most
significant bequests and donations have been:
- Thomas Kay's bequest, in 1912, of Northern and Italian
Renaissance paintings and late Victorian works on paper to the
former Borough of Heywood
- Robert Taylor Heape's donations of Victorian paintings between
1901 and 1913
- Richard Heape's donation of 19th century
watercolours in 1917
- Royds' bequest , in 1916, of 19th century pen and
ink illustrations
- A significant number of 20th century works donated
by the Contemporary Art Society
Resource Centre collections
The Service’s reserve collections are housed at the
Arts and Heritage Resource Centre. They include:
- Museum collections
- Archives
- Art Gallery collections
The collections are accessible to the public through organised
visits, open days and to individual visitors by appointment.
Staff can also help with identifying and
researching items.
Resource Centre Access
Visits are by appointment only. Monday to
Friday 10am – 5pm. Tours can be arranged for small groups.
The Resource Centre is accessible for people
with mobility difficulties and has limited disabled parking.