England’s second-largest city, Birmingham, occupies the heart of the country, quite literally. While the city oozes an English charm like no other, the handful of parks, shopping spots, quaint houses, and museums add to the overall experience. One such excellent spot to spend a whole lot of time - without even realizing it - is the extraordinary Pen Museum, wholly dedicated to the world of pens and calligraphy. Birmingham was once the pen-trade capital of the world, and it was this very city that pioneered the crafting, manufacturing, and trading of pens. Fun fact: At one point, about 100,000 varieties of pens were manufactured in Birmingham! Identifying the need to bring this to light, Pen Museum was established in 1996, and with over 5,000 displays, plus demonstrations and activities, the museum celebrates the pen-trading aspect of Birmingham’s history. We’ve put together a guide to Pen Museum, Birmingham, so use this to navigate your way around.
Things to do / Highlights
Along with a usual museum experience of walking through galleries and admiring objects and artefacts, there are a few other things you can busy yourself with.
Gain insight into the trade's history
Volunteer guides do an excellent job of taking visitors through pen-trading history, right from the time of its inception. Amongst several objects and artefacts, you’ll also be shown old feather quills, steel nib pens, and fountain pens. You’ll even be able to try your hand at using these, along with some braille equipment and some early typewriters.
Head to the 'Pen Room'
This is a small re-creation of how a traditional pen-making factory would look and function like in earlier times. Walk through the room to learn about the manufacturing process and also the toils that the factory workers had to go through in order to churn out thousands of pens each day.
Admire quirky objects
The Philip Poole Room houses some interesting objects entirely made out of nibs. Some of these objects include pyramids, stars, and a few others.
Learn about the nib-making process
The museum delves excellently into all aspects of pen-making, and one of them is nib-making. Here, you’ll be taken through the 17 crucial steps in the process, including blanking, piercing, marking, raising, slitting, and so on. This is an especially rewarding experience for a calligrapher. You’ll also be allowed to touch and use some nibs along with trying your hand at making one. Do note that this will only be allowed if you’re hitching a full tour of the process.
Attend one of the workshops and exhibitions
The museum frequently hosts exhibitions and workshops, such as those on calligraphy, that you can attend or enrol yourself in. Just head to the museum’s official website for more details.
Things to buy
Make your way to the museum’s Gift Shop because the items on sale here top the charts for keepsakes and souvenirs.
Nibs and quills
You’ll find an impressive collection of nibs and quills to choose from.
Vintage pens and ink
The museum also sells quite a few vintage pens and ink. Those from high-end brands such as William Mitchell and Sheaffer are available. You can also pick up handcrafted pens by Sohan Singh and Eric Lyons.
Books and greeting cards
The museum also houses a great collection of books and greeting cards that you can choose from.
Travellers tips
Wheelchair accessibility
Remember that because the museum is located in an old, historic building, access to certain parts may be limited.
Special needs and baby-friendly facilities
The museum has dedicated disabled-friendly toilets as well as baby changing rooms.
Average time spent
Visitors should expect to spend at least an hour at the museum, depending on how much of it you’d like to see in detail. So, be sure to keep that much of time aside for the visit.
How to get there
On foot
The museum is a 10-15-minute walking distance from Birmingham’s main shopping area, so you can easily walk it from there. Just follow Newhall Street to Graham Street, and head right to Frederick Street. You’ll find the museum’s entrance at the corner of Legge Lane.
Invest in a Swift card
This is a pre-paid service that serves as an e-wallet to purchase public transport tickets. It can be used to travel the National Express West Midlands, National Express Coventry, and the Midland Metro Tram service. Just download the Swift App on your smartphone. Swift cards make travel economical, seamless, and flexible. The rates vary according to the number of days, season, the tier of travel preferred, and mode of conveyance.
Bus
The museum enjoys great connectivity via public transport. As for public buses, hitch the no. 101 bus line from any of the city centre stops. These will drop you off at the museum’s entrance.
Tram
If you’re anywhere in the city centre, you can also hitch a tram to the museum. It’ll drop you off at Jewellery Quarter Station on Vyse Street, which is a short walk away from the museum.
Train
Regular and frequent trains run to and from Pen Museum. The Jewellery Quarter Station will bring you closest to the museum. Do note that if you’re staying in one of the neighbouring towns, make sure you explore the routes of West Midlands Railway - these connect Birmingham to all the major cities and they ply at a regular frequency.
Parking information
if you’re planning to drive down, there’s ample street parking around the museum. However, do note that these are paid on all days except Sunday.
How to book tickets (from USD 6.0)
You can either purchase admission tickets on-site or book via third-party websites.
Many visitors also opt for the Jewellery Quarter Explorer Pass, which offers up to 15% discount on general admission of three museums in the Jewellery Quarter: Pen Museum, Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, and Newman Brothers Coffin Works. How does this work? If you visit three museums, you’ll pay full admissions fare for the first museum, get 10% off on the fare for the second, and 15% off for the third. All you need to do is keep the receipts of your visit to each museum to present as proof. Remember that the validity of this pass is two days.
Skip the Line: The Pen Museum Admission Ticket
Duration: 1 to 2 hours
Pen Museum information
Pen Museum
Address: Unit 3, The Argent Centre, 60, Frederick Street, Hockley, Birmingham B1 3HS, United Kingdom
Opening hours: Tue - Sat: 11am - 4pm; Sun: 1pm- 4pm (closed on Mon)
Price: 8 USD (6 GBP)
Official website: Pen Museum
Department of tourism: Visit Birmingham
Ironbridge Gorge Museums: Annual Passport Ticket
Duration: 1 to 362 days
History
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