June in Scotland feels like a very extended spring – temperatures in the 50’s and 60’s persist and I realize that my summer wardrobe will likely get little wear here.
This past weekend it was lovely – in the mid-60’s and sunny though a bit breezy. We ventured to that lovely “Pollok Country Park” that is an oasis within Glasgow city boundaries. (I mentioned it in this blog previously.)
We heard about the re-opening of a museum located on the park grounds that has been closed since 2016. The Burrell Collection has some interesting history behind it. Sir William Burrell amassed this enormous collection of art and artifacts – from Ancient Egyptian statues to Chinese porcelain to European clocks and much more over his lifetime (and with the aid of his fortune made in the shipping business).
In 1944, he donated his collection of 9,000 objects to the city of Glasgow and made provision that it be exhibited in the countryside and available for the public to visit. Apparently, it wasn’t until the early 1980’s when the site in Pollok Country Park was designated and first opened to the public.
That site allowed only a fairly small amount of the collection to be exhibited and thus renovations were begun to expand the building a few years ago. I can’t speak to what the building before was like, but this expansion is really beautiful – filled with windows allowing lots of natural light and a view of the surrounding woods and grassy areas.
We didn’t finish viewing the entire collection – a great excuse to go back. I loved the collection of embroidery, Turkish pottery and so much more. And, like many public museums in Scotland, it’s free to visit which is a real treat.
The visit gave us an excuse to wander the park and check out the Highland calves. Sooo cute!
Happy June!