Cavan County Museum launches ‘1916 Rising Exhibition and Experience’
Official Opening on Thursday 14th April at 7.30 p.m.
www.cavanmuseum.ie

Visitors can once-again be prepared to be wowed and enthralled by a new and exciting exhibition on the ‘1916 Rising’ at Cavan County Museum, in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan.


‘The 1916 Exhibition and Experience’ at Cavan County Museum is a must-visit. This large scale outdoor exhibition will allow visitors to walk in the shoes of the men and women of 1914–16 and experience the choices made by people in the years leading up to the Easter Rising. Visitors will see from themselves a scaled down replica of the façade of the GPO and a series of contemporary building interiors that allow visitors to experience the ‘tunneling’ through buildings that was a feature of the Rising.

Cavan County Museum continues to develop and enhance the visitor experience at the museum which is widely regarded as one of the best county museums in the country. In 2014 a 350 metre long outdoor replica WWI trench was installed on the grounds of the museum with an accompanying WWI Trench Experience and Exhibition inside.

The WWI Trench Experience and the new 1916 Experience are located beside each other in close proximity to the museum’s ‘Peace Garden’ which contains a  series of art works created by cross community and cross border school and adult partnerships.


Visitors to the museum can now take a ‘walk through time’ and choose a route which will ultimately lead to World War 1 or to the GPO. They can explore the shared theme of loss and its impact. This is physically done through both experiences ending in the dedicated reflective space of the ‘Peace Garden’. The WWI Experience and 1916 Experience brings history to life and will allow visitors to engage with two very diverse strands of Irish history and explore the common theme of the loss that inevitably accompanies conflict. Guided tours of the WW1 Trench Experience and the 1916 Rising Experience are available.

Cavan County Museum continues to develop and enhance its visitor experience year on year. The museum is gaining in reputation, increasing in visitor numbers and becoming a must-see attraction in County Cavan and the surrounding counties. Since the opening of the WW1 Trench Experience, visitor numbers at the museum have grown by 40%. The new ‘1916 Rising Exhibition’ can only contribute to this success.

Since 2004 Cavan County Museum has worked extensively to promote Peace and Reconciliation through a Cross Border Project entitled ‘Connecting People, Places and Heritage’. In 2012, as part of our long term goal to engage with the ‘Decade of Commemoration’ and to promote Peace Building, we developed an exhibition on the ‘The Ulster Covenant’.