Museums Map

Museums across Scotland preserve the objects that allow us to reconstruct Roman campaigns, frontier life and encounters with local communities. Use the interactive map to find collections near you, then follow the linked directory below for an introduction to what each museum contains and how to plan a visit.

Interactive museums map

Museum guides

The museums vary greatly. Some have major permanent Roman galleries; others contain a small but locally important display. The links below explain what makes each collection useful.

Southern Scotland and the Borders

• Annan Museum — finds from Birrens Roman fort and the archaeology of Annandale.
• Halliwell’s House Museum, Selkirk — a local collection with a possible Roman fort or camp gatepost.
• Trimontium Museum, Melrose — a dedicated Roman museum interpreting the fort complex at Newstead.
• Tullie, Carlisle — Roman Carlisle, Hadrian’s Wall and the western frontier routes into Scotland.

Edinburgh and central Scotland

• National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh — Scotland’s principal national collection of Roman and Iron Age objects.
• Callendar House, Falkirk — Roman Falkirk and the Antonine Wall within Callendar Park.
• Kinneil Museum, Bo’ness — the Antonine Wall, Kinneil fortlet and the wider estate.
• Auld Kirk Museum, Kirkintilloch — local evidence from a town built directly over the Antonine frontier.
• The Hunterian Museum, Glasgow — the finest dedicated display of Antonine Wall distance slabs, inscriptions and finds.

The Tay, Perthshire and Angus

• Abernethy Museum — photographs and interpretation relating to Carpow Roman fort.
• Perth Museum — the archaeology of Perthshire, including the landscapes of Carpow, Inchtuthil and Bertha.
• The McManus, Dundee — important Roman material from Carpow and the Tay region.
• Montrose Museum — a small collection providing context for Roman activity in Angus.

Hadrian’s Wall and north-east England

These museums lie outside Scotland but provide essential context for the army, frontier and supply system from which Roman operations farther north were organised.

• Segedunum Roman Fort and Museum — the excavated fort at the eastern end of Hadrian’s Wall.
• Arbeia South Shields Roman Fort — reconstructed buildings and the supply base at the mouth of the Tyne.

Collections change: Museums may lend objects, alter displays or close galleries temporarily. The individual guides link to the current official visitor information.