About
Barbican House Museum is the flagship museum of the Sussex Archaeological Society, housed in a handsome late-sixteenth-century timber-framed building in the heart of historic Lewes, directly adjacent to Lewes Castle. The Society, founded in 1846, is one of England's oldest archaeological and historical societies, and Barbican House has served as its headquarters since 1927. Together, the museum and the adjacent castle form the principal heritage attraction in the county town of East Sussex.
The museum presents the archaeology and history of Sussex from the earliest human habitation to the post-medieval period, drawing on one of the most significant regional archaeological collections in southern England. Sussex has yielded an exceptional wealth of prehistoric material — the county's chalk downland preserves flint-working sites, causewayed enclosures, Bronze Age round barrows and Iron Age hillforts in remarkable density — and the museum holds extensive collections from landmark excavations including Whitehawk Camp (a Neolithic causewayed enclosure on the outskirts of Brighton), the settlement at Plumpton Plain, and the famous Lewes hoard of Late Bronze Age bronze objects.
The Roman period is illustrated with finds from numerous villa sites across East and West Sussex, while the Anglo-Saxon collections include material from cemetery excavations that illuminate the gradual conversion of the region to Christianity. Medieval Lewes is covered through objects ranging from the Battle of Lewes (1264, when Simon de Montfort defeated Henry III) to the town's Flemish cloth trade and its priory, founded by William de Warenne in 1081.
Barbican House also houses an important collection of historical portraits, topographical prints, watercolours and photographs relating to Sussex, as well as a library and archive that supports researchers interested in the county's past. The museum's position in the centre of a medieval town renowned for its architectural and historical character makes it an outstanding base for exploring the broader heritage of the region.
Categories:
Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
💡 Visitor Tips
- Buy the combined ticket for Barbican House Museum and Lewes Castle — it offers better value and the castle is only metres away; the views from the castle tower are not to be missed.
- Lewes is one of England's finest small towns for heritage walking — pick up a town trail leaflet from the museum or tourist information and allow extra time to explore the castle precincts, Southover Grange and the Keere Street cobbles.
- Train access from London Brighton line makes Lewes a very easy day trip; the walk from the station to the museum takes under ten minutes uphill through the town centre.
- The museum's library archive is available to researchers by prior appointment — contact the Society in advance if you want to consult historical documents or excavation records.
- Visit Anne of Cleves House in Southover High Street (a second Sussex Archaeological Society museum) on the same day for a comprehensive overview of the county's heritage.
- Lewes is internationally famous for its Guy Fawkes Night celebrations on 5 November — by far the largest in Britain — but the town is very busy that night; visit at another time if you prefer a quieter experience.
- The museum shop stocks a wide range of Sussex Archaeological Society publications at member prices if you join on the day — a worthwhile option for anyone with a serious interest in the county's history.
Highlights
Prehistoric Sussex Galleries
The prehistoric galleries display finds spanning half a million years of human activity in Sussex, from Lower Palaeolithic flint tools to Iron Age metalwork. Highlights include material from Whitehawk Camp — a Neolithic causewayed enclosure just outside Brighton — and Bronze Age roundbarrow assemblages from the South Downs.
The galleries illuminate how the chalk downland supported dense settlement from the Neolithic onwards, making Sussex one of the richest prehistoric landscapes in Britain.
Flint arrowheads, jet ornaments, and bronze axes and swords are displayed alongside clear explanatory panels.
The Lewes Hoard
The dramatic Bronze Age Lewes Hoard, found in the nineteenth century, comprises a group of high-quality bronze objects including socketed axes, palstaves, spearheads and other implements deposited together around 900–800 BC. The hoard represents one of the finest assemblages of Late Bronze Age metalwork from Sussex and raises fascinating questions about why such objects were deliberately buried — ritual deposit, trader's stock, or smithing scrap?
The carefully displayed hoard is one of the museum's most-visited objects.
Roman Sussex Collections
Sussex contains an exceptional density of Roman villas and settlements, and the museum's Roman collections draw on decades of excavation across the county. Pottery, glass, jewellery, coins, and architectural fragments from villa sites including Bignor, Fishbourne, Barcombe, and Southwick illustrate the prosperity of Roman Sussex.
The collections complement visits to the great Roman sites in the region — Fishbourne Roman Palace (National Trust) and Bignor Roman Villa — making Barbican House an important reference point for understanding Roman life in the South East.
Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Gallery
The transition from Roman Britain to the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms is traced through cemetery finds, metalwork and documentary evidence. The museum holds material from the Battle of Lewes (14 May 1264), when Simon de Montfort's rebel barons defeated King Henry III in a pivotal engagement of the Second Barons' War — an event that took place on the town's outskirts and led to the first directly elected English parliament.
Medieval pottery, pilgrim badges, and records of Lewes Priory (founded 1081 by William de Warenne as the first Cluniac house in England) complete this section.
Collections
The Sussex Archaeological Society's collections at Barbican House span the full sweep of human activity in Sussex from the Lower Palaeolithic to the post-medieval period, anchored in material from the Society's own fieldwork conducted since 1846. The prehistoric collections are nationally significant, with particularly strong holdings from downland excavations and the Lewes hoard.
Roman, Anglo-Saxon and medieval material complements visits to the county's major heritage sites.
The art and topographical collections document Sussex's visual culture from the seventeenth century. The library and archive form an invaluable scholarly resource. Taken together, the collections make Barbican House the essential reference point for the archaeology and history of one of England's most historically rich counties.
Sussex from Earliest Times
Galleries covering prehistoric, Roman, Anglo-Saxon and medieval Sussex with original artefacts, interpretation panels and reconstructed settings.
Art and Topography of Sussex
Upper floor galleries featuring portraits, watercolours, engravings and photographs documenting the county's people, places and landscapes.
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.