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Museum
Fitzwilliam Museum
The university's art and antiquities museum on Trumpington Street, founded under the will of Viscount FitzWilliam in 1816.
A mini guide to
Museums, Botanic Garden and the South
The Fitzwilliam, the Downing Street museums, the Botanic Garden and the meadows toward Grantchester
Photos
1 / 10Welcome to the area
The Fitzwilliam, the Downing Street museums, the Botanic Garden and the meadows toward Grantchester
South of the center, Trumpington Street runs past Peterhouse and Little St Mary's to the Fitzwilliam Museum. The Downing Site and New Museums Site, off Downing Street, hold the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the Sedgwick Museum and the Museum of Zoology, and the Polar Museum is on Lensfield Road.
The Cambridge University Botanic Garden lies further south, between Trumpington Road, Bateman Street and Hills Road. West of Trumpington Street the Cam runs through Coe Fen and Sheep's Green, and Grantchester Meadows lead on to Grantchester, about 2 miles (3 km) from the center.
Highlights
Start here
If you only have a few hours, these are good places to begin.
Museum
Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
University museum of archaeology and ethnography on the Downing Site, with its public entrance on Downing Street.
Directions Website Report a problem with Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
Museum
Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences
Geology museum on the Downing Site; the oldest of the eight University of Cambridge Museums.
Directions Report a problem with Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences
Museum
Museum of Zoology
University zoology museum in the David Attenborough Building on the New Museums Site.
Museum
Whipple Museum of the History of Science
Museum of scientific instruments in the former Perse School on Free School Lane, founded in 1944.
Directions Website Report a problem with Whipple Museum of the History of Science
Museum
The Polar Museum
Museum at the Scott Polar Research Institute on Lensfield Road, devoted to the polar regions.
Find your way
On the map
The map shows Museums, Botanic Garden and the South and the streets around it. The Getting there page lists nearby stops and stations.
Insider tips
Before you go
1
Check museum sites
The University museums have their own websites. Check each for opening times and any booking before you travel.
2
Walk to Grantchester
Grantchester Meadows run along the west bank of the Cam between Newnham Croft and Grantchester village, about 2 miles (3 km) south of the center.
3
Combine the Downing Street museums
The Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the Sedgwick Museum and the Museum of Zoology are within a few minutes of one another off Downing Street.
4
Allow time for the Botanic Garden
The Botanic Garden lies between Trumpington Road, Bateman Street and Hills Road. Check its website for opening times and ticket details.
Tips from the Britlens editors
Explore this guide
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Open the mini guide →Photo credits
- Museums, Botanic Garden and the South (area photo): Kim Fyson, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Fitzwilliam Museum: Andrew Dunn (Solipsist), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology: Magnus Manske, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences: Ruth Sharville, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Museum of Zoology: Magnus Manske, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- The Polar Museum: GualdimG, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cambridge University Botanic Garden: temporalata, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Downing College: Raffy a franco, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Peterhouse: Azeira at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Hobson's Conduit: Magnus Manske, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Church of St Mary the Less: Magnus Manske, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Coe Fen: JackyR, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sheep's Green: Mr Ignavy, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Newnham College: Azeira at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Grantchester Meadows: R Boed from The Netherlands, CC BY 2.0, source
- Grantchester: David Purchase, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Mill Road and the East: John Sutton, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Colleges and the Backs: Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- King's Parade and Market Square: John Sutton, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, used under the licences shown. All photo credits
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