About
New Walk Museum and Art Gallery stands as Leicester's premier civic museum, housed in a striking Victorian building on the elegant tree-lined New Walk promenade. Founded in 1849 as the Leicester Town Museum, it represents one of the first purpose-built municipal museums in England, reflecting Victorian Leicester's industrial prosperity and civic pride.
The imposing red-brick building, designed in an Italianate style with distinctive arched windows, was extended in 1894 to accommodate the city's growing collections. Its location on New Walk, a pedestrian promenade laid out in 1785, makes it one of Leicester's most architecturally distinguished cultural landmarks. The museum's grand entrance hall with its sweeping staircase and ornate decorative details immediately conveys the Victorian commitment to public education and cultural enrichment.
The museum houses internationally significant collections spanning art, natural history, geology, and Egyptology. Its art collections include major holdings of German Expressionist paintings (one of the best collections in Britain), Victorian narrative paintings, and an impressive array of British art from the 18th century to the present. The natural history galleries feature extinct species, geological specimens from Leicestershire's diverse landscapes, and a complete Cetiosaurus dinosaur skeleton - Britain's first complete dinosaur fossil discovery. The Ancient Egypt galleries contain over 500 objects, making it one of the most comprehensive provincial Egyptian collections in the UK.
With free admission year-round, family-friendly displays, and a constantly changing temporary exhibition program, New Walk Museum provides an essential cultural experience in Leicester's city centre. The museum attracts over 100,000 visitors annually who come to explore its remarkably diverse collections under one roof.
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Annual Visitors (2019)
100,000
Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
📅 Best Times to Visit
Quietest: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Busiest: Saturday, Sunday
💡 Weekday mornings (11:00-13:00) offer the quietest viewing experience with good natural light in the art galleries
💡 Visitor Tips
- Arrive at opening time (11:00) on weekdays for the quietest experience, especially in the art galleries where natural light is best in late morning. Weekends attract families and can be busy in the dinosaur and Egypt galleries.
- The museum covers three floors with remarkably diverse collections - plan at least 2 hours to see highlights, or 3 hours for a comprehensive visit. Pick up a floor plan at the entrance to prioritize your interests.
- Don't miss the German Expressionist collection on the first floor - it's internationally significant and rarely seen outside major city galleries. The works by Otto Dix and Ernst Ludwig Kirchner are particularly powerful.
- The museum has no café, but New Walk's tree-lined promenade offers pleasant spots for breaks, with several cafés within 5 minutes' walk. Consider bringing a drink for longer visits.
- Free guided tours run on select weekends (check website for schedule) and provide excellent context for the collections. Tours typically focus on either the art galleries or the Egypt collection.
- Photography is allowed throughout for personal use (no flash), making this perfect for documenting the art and dinosaur displays. Some temporary exhibitions may restrict photography - check signage.
- The Victorian building retains its original architectural character with elegant staircases and period details. Take time to appreciate the building itself, which reflects Leicester's 19th-century civic ambition.
- Temporary exhibition spaces on the ground floor host regularly changing displays of contemporary art, photography, and special collections. Check the website before visiting to see current exhibitions, which often complement the permanent collections.
Highlights
German Expressionist Collection
One of the finest provincial collections of German Expressionist art in Britain, featuring major works by Otto Dix, George Grosz, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Max Beckmann. Assembled primarily through the foresight of Leicester Museum's curators in the 1940s-1960s when such works were undervalued, the collection includes powerful woodcuts, lithographs, and paintings that capture the psychological intensity and social critique of Weimar Germany.
Key works include Dix's haunting war etchings and Kirchner's vibrant street scenes.
This internationally significant collection attracts scholars and art lovers from across Europe and represents a unique cultural treasure within a regional British museum.
Ancient Egypt Galleries
One of the most comprehensive provincial Egyptian collections in the UK, featuring over 500 authentic artifacts spanning 3,000 years of ancient Egyptian civilization. Highlights include elaborately painted mummy cases, canopic jars, ushabti figures, and everyday objects that illuminate daily life in ancient Egypt.
The collection includes a complete mummy and coffin set, intricate jewelry, hieroglyphic inscriptions, and religious artifacts that demonstrate Egyptian beliefs about death and the afterlife.
Interactive displays and hands-on elements make this an engaging experience for families. The collection's strength lies in its range of domestic and funerary objects that provide insight into both royal and ordinary Egyptian life.
Rutland Dinosaur (Cetiosaurus)
Britain's first complete dinosaur skeleton ever discovered, this magnificent Cetiosaurus (whale lizard) specimen was unearthed in Rutland in 1968-1969. Dating from the Middle Jurassic period approximately 165 million years ago, this 15-meter-long herbivorous sauropod represents a crucial find in British paleontology.
The dramatic full skeletal display showcases the creature's massive size and provides visitors with an awe-inspiring encounter with prehistoric life.
The discovery revolutionized understanding of British dinosaurs and demonstrated that complete fossils could be found in the Midlands. Interpretive panels explain the painstaking excavation process and what this gentle giant's life would have been like in Jurassic Leicestershire.
Victorian Painting Collection
An exceptional collection of Victorian narrative paintings featuring works by William Powell Frith, George Frederic Watts, and John Everett Millais. These large-scale canvases exemplify the Victorian taste for morally instructive storytelling through art, depicting scenes from literature, history, and contemporary life.
The collection includes sentimental domestic scenes, dramatic historical moments, and Pre-Raphaelite-influenced works characterized by meticulous detail and vibrant color.
Notable pieces include portraits by Leicester-born artist Henry Tanworth Wells. The galleries provide insight into Victorian values, social concerns, and the period's complex relationship with industrialization and empire. These works remain highly accessible to modern audiences through their engaging narratives.
Collections
New Walk Museum holds extraordinarily diverse collections encompassing fine art, natural history, archaeology, and decorative arts. The art collections span European painting from the 15th century to contemporary works, with particular strengths in German Expressionism (one of Britain's finest provincial collections), Victorian narrative painting, and British modern art.
Natural history collections include geological specimens spanning 600 million years, extensive taxidermy, and Britain's first complete dinosaur skeleton.
The Ancient Egypt collection numbers over 500 objects and ranks among the most comprehensive in provincial Britain. Archaeological holdings cover Leicestershire from prehistoric times through the medieval period, with particularly strong Roman material from Ratae (Roman Leicester). Decorative arts collections encompass ceramics, glass, textiles, and metalwork primarily from the 18th-20th centuries.
Art Galleries
Multiple connected galleries showcasing European and British art from the 15th century to the present day. The display progresses chronologically, featuring old masters, 18th-century British portraits, Victorian narrative paintings, and modern British art. The highlight is the German Expressionist collection, displayed in dedicated galleries that explore the movement's origins, key artists, and social context.
Rotating displays ensure regular visitors see different works from the extensive collection. The galleries occupy the museum's historic first-floor rooms, with their original Victorian architectural details providing an appropriate setting for viewing fine art.
📍 First Floor
Natural History Galleries
Comprehensive displays exploring natural history from geological time through to modern ecology. The galleries feature the spectacular Rutland Dinosaur (Cetiosaurus) complete skeleton, Leicestershire's ancient geology including Charnwood's volcanic rocks, fossils from local Jurassic deposits, and extensive taxidermy showcasing British wildlife.
Interactive elements allow hands-on exploration of specimens.
The displays emphasize Leicestershire's unique natural heritage while placing it within broader evolutionary and geological contexts. Family-friendly interpretation makes complex scientific concepts accessible to all ages.
📍 First Floor
Ancient Egypt Galleries
Extensive galleries dedicated to ancient Egyptian civilization, featuring over 500 authentic artifacts arranged thematically to explore daily life, religion, burial practices, and beliefs about the afterlife. The centerpiece is a complete mummy and decorated coffin set, surrounded by canopic jars, amulets, ushabti servant figures, and funerary goods.
Other sections display jewelry, cosmetics, tools, writing materials, and religious objects.
Interactive computer displays provide additional information about hieroglyphics, mummification, and Egyptian gods. The galleries successfully balance scholarly depth with family-friendly engagement.
📍 Second Floor
Leicester's History
Archaeological and social history displays tracing Leicester's development from prehistoric settlement through Roman occupation (Ratae Corieltauvorum) to medieval town and modern industrial city. Key exhibits include Roman pottery, coins, mosaics, and building materials; medieval artifacts; and objects relating to Leicester's important textile and hosiery industries.
The displays emphasize how archaeological evidence helps reconstruct past lives and how Leicester's history connects to broader British historical developments.
Touchable replicas and interactive elements engage younger visitors.
📍 Ground Floor
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.