Bristol’s new museum M Shed tells history through everyday objects and stories from local people.
The museum, which opened in June at Harbourside, even has a paper bag on display as part of its exhibits.
Expert paper conservator Harry Metcalf explains: “This isn’t just any paper bag, it is one of the earliest paper bags – it dates from 1831. It comes from a grocery shop called A.S.Taylor.
“But the real significance for the city’s heritage is simply the fact that it is a paper bag – Bristol has a real history of paper bag making, with Bedminster firm Robinson’s introducing the world to paper bags in the 19th century.”
The museum contains more than 3,000 objects from normal life in Bristol over the last 2,000 years.
Lee Hutchinson Collections Officer (industrial and maritime history) says of M Shed: “There are so many diverse and fascinating stories in M Shed, it’s hard to single out one in particular. The stories that I find most interesting concern the lives of Bristol’s working population, so for me the mid to late Victorian stories hold a deep fascination.
“Rather than presenting facts and figures in the dispassionate voice of an omniscient narrator, the stories emerge from a range of perspectives provided by Bristol people from past, present and from all walks of life.”
The stories told in the museum have been unearthed through work with experts and communities in the city. The aim is for this work to continue as part of the museum’s ongoing project to preserve Bristol’s history.