Visit Us
Shetland Museum & Archives is open. Drop in and visit us, no booking is necessary.
Free to visit - As always, entry to the Museum and Archives is free but now more than ever we need your support - please consider making a donation.
Online Resources
Inside Visit Us
Crofthouse Museum
The Shetland Crofthouse Museum is now closed and will reopen in May for the 2026 season.
Read more
Archives Searchroom
The Archives searchroom is a comfortable, quiet space which is open to anyone who wishes to find out more about a particular subject, or just browse books, newspapers or records in the collection.
Read more
Closed: Hays Dock Café
It is with regret that we announce the closure of 'Hay's Dock by The Dowry', which was operated by Beervana Ltd. Unfortunately, despite efforts to remain open, securing the necessary staff has not been possible which has resulted in a mutual end of t...
Read more
Activities
Whatever your reason for visiting us at Shetland Museum and Archives, there are a range of activities on offer to ensure you can make the most of your time with us.
Read more
Hay's Dock
Shetland Museum and Archives sits on Hay’s Dock; the last remaining area of original dock on the Lerwick waterfront, which is now category B listed. This is a perfect setting to highlight the strong heritage connection with the sea.
Read more
Public Art
Shetland Amenity Trust commissioned over 60 individual artworks as part of its Shetland Museum and Archives Public Art Project. These are on show throughout the building and dock, some even appearing alongside the artefacts and documents in the galleries and Archives.
Read more
Accessibility
We want to make sure we continue to offer an excellent experience for all visitors with additional needs .
Read moreVisit Us Blog Posts
Take a Virtual Tour of Fethaland
A new interactive visitor experience has been installed at Shetland Museum and Archives, which allows the user to take a stroll ...
Read more
BBC Sound Booth comes to Shetland Museum and Archives
Shetland Museum and Archives is pleased to be taking part in the BBC Listening Project Tour.
Read more
Archaeological Artefacts Return
Over 100,000 archaeological artefacts have been returned to Shetland for inclusion in the Recognised Archaeology Collection of ...
Read moreShetland's Sunken Treasure - Unveiled!
A new exhibition has been unveiled at Shetland Museum and Archives. The two displays, located outside the archives showcase finds from ...
Read moreBreaking The Mould
After 240 years a rare Fetlar bronze armlet, will return home to Shetland for a museum exhibition from 16 November 2014 to 20 January ...
Read more
Essential repairs commence on Nil Desperandum
Following a successful request for volunteers by the Shetland Amenity Trust, essential repair work has begun at Hay’s Dock to the ...
Read more
Gold Standard Maintained
Shetland Amenity Trust and one of its core services, the Shetland Museum and Archives, have both, again, achieved Gold Standards in ...
Read more
Young Ambassador Project
Shetland Museum and Archives, and Shetland Arts are looking for 12 young ambassadors to take part in an exciting 3-month project in ...
Read more
Writing The North Project Concludes
A year-long project which has explored the historical literature of Orkney and Shetland, and explored continuity with contemporary ...
Read more
ARTIST ROOMS 214 Tour: Don McCullin
Shetland Museum & Archives and Shetland Arts Development Agency will show work by internationally acclaimed photojournalist Don ...
Read moreGrant Award for Migration Study
Shetland Museum and Archives are delighted to announce that they have received a Leverhulme Trust Artist in Residence award, to work ...
Read moreWriting the North
Shetland and Orkney’s literature will take centre stage in a major new project being launched this weekend in Edinburgh. The project ...
Read more
Visitor numbers boosted by Divine Cat visit
The Gayer Anderson Cat Exhibition from September to December attracted over 6000 more visits from the same period in the previous ...
Read more
Join our mailing list
Sign up for our newsletter to receive the latest news, events, exhibitions and behind-the-scenes stories from Shetland Amenity Trust.
Sign up