iTravelUK > Attractions > Museums > England > Southwest > Somerset
The Jane Austen Centre
An ideal attraction for all Jane Austen enthusiasts, the Jane Austen Centre is suitably housed in a Georgian building on Gay Street, the same street on which Austen herself lived in 1805. Austen not only lived in Bath but preserved its 19th century essence in her novels Northanger Abbey and Persuasion . She has given us the snobbery, the platitudes, the gossip of life in Bath at the time but the Bath that she once knew remains little changed for today's visitor. The Georgian Architecture has peen preserved and the Circus, the Queen Square and even the Pump Room are much the same as they were when Austen lived here between 1801 and 1806. The Jane Austen Centre recreates Austen's experience of Bath and how her intimate knowledge of the city wove itself into her much-loved works. On your visit, you'll also see film costumes, a Georgian shop front and formal Georgian garden and an audio-visual show.
Museum of Costume
A must for anyone interested in fashion, the Museum of Costume in Bath will overwhelm your senses with fashionable dress and accessories dating from the 1780's. On your tour, you'll see some 200 dressed figures, various accessories, fashion in Jane Austen's time and the wonderful Lady Ottoline's Morrell Collection, (one of the members of the Bloomsbury Group).
Bath Assembly Rooms
These magnificent Assembly Rooms were built by John Wood the Younger. Opened in 1771, the rooms were purpose designed for 18th century gatherings called 'assemblies'. At a typical assembly guests danced, played cards, listened to music, drank tea and more importantly hobnosed with other members of high society in Bath at the time. On your visit, you'll see the Ball Room where balls such as those featured in Jane Austen's novels were once held twice weekly and catered for a thousand guests. You'll also see the Tea Room and the Octagonal Room. The Museum of Costume is housed in the same building. The Assembly Rooms in Bath are open from 11am and close at 5pm from November to February and at 6pm from March to October.
The American Museum in Britain
Housed in a mansion built in 1820, the American Museum in Britain features fifteen lavishly furnished period rooms. On your visit, you'll get an insight into American lifestyles from the time of the first settlers to the American Civil War. The Exhibition Gallery hosts changing exhibitions and a Map Room with a fine collection of historical maps from the Dallas Pratt Collection. A new gallery in the basement displaying an American Heritage Exhibition is due to open in April 2007. The American Museum in Britain also features a special Christmas at Claverton exhibition " visit their website for further details.
Bath Postal Museum
The Bath Postal Museum takes a look at the changing face of post from 2000B.C. to the present. On your tour, you'll find out more about the main people who developed the Post Office, see rare and unusual artefacts and learn more about the history of Post Office Uniforms and British Post Boxes.
Sally Lunn's Museum
Sally Lunn's Museum is not only the oldest house in Bath (1482) but also the house in which Sally Lunn lived. The museum lies in the cellar where you'll see its Roman and Medieval foundations, its original kitchen with a faggot oven, Georgian range and antique baking utensils. A trip to Sally Lunn's Museum will tell you more about the mysterious origins of Sally Lunn " was she really a French Huguenot who emigrated to England and if so, where did she get such and English name? Of course, your trip will be incomplete unless you stop and savour their delicious Sally Lunn buns " a Bath speciality.