Bede Museum
Our museum tells the story of Bede and his time, from the beginnings of the Anglo-Saxon period through his life, death and extraordinary legacy. Widely regarded as the ‘father of English history’, Bede was an author, scholar, linguist and translator who also composed works on astronomical timekeeping and the motions of the sun, Earth and Moon.
An English monk at the twin monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow, his most famous work is The Ecclesiastical History of the English People. One of the most important original references on Anglo-Saxon history, this work also played a key role in the development of an English national identity.
Home to Europe’s largest collection of coloured glass from the 7th and 8th centuries alongside unique stonework, artefacts, and the Abbadia Reliquary gifted to Jarrow Hall as part of our twinning with the Museum of the Abbey in Tuscany. The museum also hosts a full-sized reproduction of Codex Amiatinus; the oldest complete Latin Bible in existence. While one copy was passed on through time, the other two have been lost to history and our exhibition tells this incredible story. Codex Amiatinus and the coloured glass were featured as part of the Great Exhibition of the North’s A History of the North in 100 Objects.
