Museum of locks

[chunk]

Anyone interested in the history of smithing in the UK visit

http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/locks/lockmuseum.htm

it mainly covers the Midlands but

http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/locks/gazetteer/gaz01.htm

Lists many lockmakers from all over the UK and the world with some good scans of old locks and advertising paraphenalia.

Call me an "anorak" but I just spent a very pleasurable thirty minutes browsing this site

[quicklocks]

[Minus]

Man i wish i could check that place out

[oldlock]

The US lock museum in terryville has some good stuff too. The curator is a bit narrow minded though.

Paul

[panalman]

Anyone interested in the history of smithing in the UK visit

http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/locks/lockmuseum.htm

it mainly covers the Midlands but

http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/Museum/locks/gazetteer/gaz01.htm

Lists many lockmakers from all over the UK and the world with some good scans of old locks and advertising paraphenalia.

Call me an "anorak" but I just spent a very pleasurable thirty minutes browsing this site

Yes I managed to visit yesterday and it was well worth the effort some really nice locks on display off which some you can play with. That Albert lock made by Carpenter & Tildesley and first seen at the Great Exhibition in 1851 is breath taking.
And it's free to go in.

[greyman]

The Willenhall museum of locks looks interesting, but for first time visitors to the UK, the first stop should probably be the basement floor of the Science Museum in London (specifically the Secret Life of the Home) and on a more wrought-iron note, the 1st floor of the Victoria and Albert museum across the road. The Science museum has a library with some lock books also.

The websites are:

http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

http://www.vam.ac.uk/

Both of these places have considerable holdings in locks. The science museum exhibits are better explained, but the V&A has some nice warded locks and padlocks. Both museums are free entry as far as I know.

The Bricard museum in Paris is also worth a visit.

http://www.paris.org/Musees/Serrurerie/

There are also a number of museums with locks in Germany and Austria. Perhaps one of the locals could tell us a bit about these?

Also - could someone who knows about it send in some info about the Mossman collection in New York. I'd love to see that museum

[Vincent-XXI]

I know the german museum is close to Nuremberg, and the Austrian museum looks like its well worth a vist. A local locksmith in Belfast who is also a lock collector was visiting the Austrian museum a few months ago, and is heading to the German one in a soon. His shop in Belfast is close enough to a museum of locks, always has something interesting to show everytime I pop in.

He has shown me the book purchased at the Austrian lock museum, the lock and keys are works of art all hand cut and very decrotative, one key also functioed as a pistol, wish I had one of those!