Tenby Museum and Art Gallery
Tenby Museum and Art Gallery is in Castle Hill, Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Opened in 1878, it is the oldest independent museum in Wales. It collects local geology, biology, archaeology and maritime artifacts. Since 1976, it has also shown art and crafts by local and national artists, with the Wilfred Harrison Art Gallery hosting changing exhibitions. The New Art Gallery opened in 1995, adding contemporary works to the space. The permanent collection includes works by Gwen and Augustus John, Kyffin Williams, John Piper, Nina Hamnett, Claudia Williams, John Uzzell Edwards and John Knapp Fisher.
The building is a Grade II listed structure. The museum began when trustees decided to display the Gilbert N. Smith collection, which the town had bought for £100. They rented the old National School on Castle Hill for one shilling a year and paid for refurbishment from local donations and trustee funds. Early fundraising included a notable £100 donation from MP E. J. Reed.
In the late 20th century the museum received national recognition, winning awards such as the Prince of Wales Award in 1993 and the Shoestring Award in 1996. Prince Charles visited on 31 July 2003 to mark the museum’s 125th anniversary.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 00:38 (CET).