This museum houses an impressive collection of 5000 years’ worth of culture, people and their interaction with this ancient landscape. Comprehensive but never dull, it covers everything from the archipelago’s geology to its fishing industry, via local mythology – find out about scary nyuggles (ghostly horses), or detect trows (fairies). Pictish carvings and replica jewellery are among the finest pieces. The museum also includes a working lighthouse mechanism, a small gallery, a boat-building workshop and an archive for tracing Shetland ancestry.
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Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±'s must-see attractions
4.65 MILES
Little Noss, 1.5 miles wide, lies just east of Bressay. High seacliffs harbour over 100,000 pairs of breeding seabirds, while inland heath supports…
21.46 MILES
High on the cliffs at Sumburgh Head, this excellent attraction is set across several buildings. Displays explain about the lighthouse, foghorn and radar…
20.57 MILES
Old and new collide here, with Sumburgh airport right by this picturesque, instructive archaeological site. Various periods of occupation from 2500 BC to…
14.56 MILES
A couple of miles beyond Bigton is the largest shell-and-sand tombolo (sand or gravel isthmus) in Britain. Walk across to beautiful, emerald-capped St…
4.52 MILES
This enthusiastic modern museum by Scalloway Castle has an excellent display on Scalloway life and history, with prehistoric finds, witch-burnings and…
4.6 MILES
During WWII, the Norwegian resistance movement operated the ‘Shetland Bus’ from here. The trips were very successful, carrying agents, wireless operators…
20.05 MILES
This dig brings Shetland’s prehistory vividly to life; it’s a must-see for archaeology buffs, but fun for kids, too. Clued-up guides in Iron Age clothes…
8.7 MILES
Four miles north of Skeld, a side road leads to Sand, where you'll find Da Gairdins i Sand, a brave attempt to create a colourful woodland garden amid the…
Nearby attractions
0.25 MILES
Built in 1781, this fort occupies the site of an earlier fortification built in 1665 to protect the harbour from the Dutch navy. The five-sided fortress…
0.79 MILES
This fortified site, just under a mile southwest of Lerwick's town centre, was occupied from the 7th century BC to the 6th century AD. It’s impressively…
0.92 MILES
A mile north of the centre of Lerwick, this four-square stone house, birthplace of P&O founder Arthur Anderson, was also once a fish-curing station. It…
0.98 MILES
This headland gives a marvellous perspective of the entrance to Lerwick's harbour, as well as Breiwick (bay) and Bressay. There's a golf course, parkland,…
1.02 MILES
The Bressay Heritage Centre is by the ferry dock and has an exhibition on Bressay life and history, as well as information about the mysterious Bronze Age…
3.54 MILES
Just south of Veensgarth village, near a parking area at the northern end of the Loch of Tingwall, is the little tongue of land that was the site of Law…
4.52 MILES
This enthusiastic modern museum by Scalloway Castle has an excellent display on Scalloway life and history, with prehistoric finds, witch-burnings and…
4.53 MILES
Scalloway's most prominent landmark is its castle, built around 1600 by Earl Patrick Stewart. The turreted and corbelled tower house is fairly well…