Artisans of the Torbay Marble Industry
Torquay Museum
When: 01 July 2024 to 14 December 2024
Where: The Bridge Gallery
Time: 10am - 4.45pm
Cost: £3.60 - £11
Suitable for: Any age
The Devon marble industry was once Britain’s most important ornamental stone industry and with its rich geological formations, Torbay was right at the center of this unique resource.
From the early 19th century local family dynasties of marble masons grew, these were the artisans of the Torbay marble industry and this permanent gallery tells their story.
These pioneering marble workers specialised in not only quarrying and transporting the raw material, but also cutting and finishing beautiful products for churches, cathedrals and fine building interiors across Britain and the world.
Alongside these architectural decorations a flourishing sideline of beautiful ornaments, vases, jewellery and specimen marble tables was also produced. These had influences from Florentine pietra dura masters, Russian malachite mosaic work and the Scottish agate jewellery industry and they attracted Royal and celebrity patrons.
Discover the story of the Woodleys, Grants, Blackers and Jenkins through some of the exquisite items they produced, and how they developed Torbay’s most important export spanning over 200 years.
Exhibitions & Projects
-
Get Me To The Church On Time
Ilfracombe Museum
23 June 2025 to 17 August 2025
-
Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes
The Box, Plymouth
24 May 2025 to 07 September 2025
-
Into Abstraction: Modern British Art and the Landscape
The Burton at Bideford
19 July 2025 to 14 September 2025
-
Digging Deeper: Celebrating volunteers in North Devon's archaeology
The Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon
26 July 2025 to 04 October 2025
-
Treasures of North Devon
The Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon
19 July 2025 to 11 October 2025
-
Six Weeks To Go
Kingsbridge Cookworthy Museum
31 March 2025 to 31 October 2025
-
Kingsbridge 1939 1945 : The Image and the Place
Kingsbridge Cookworthy Museum
31 March 2025 to 31 October 2025
-
Battle of Britain Anniversary Exhibition and Talk Series
Exmouth Museum and Heritage Centre registered charity 291311
08 April 2025 to 01 November 2025
-
Jyll Bradley: Running and Returning
The Box, Plymouth
05 April 2025 to 02 November 2025
-
Coastal Threads: Textile Art
Fairlynch Museum Budleigh Salterton
01 May 2025 to 02 November 2025
-
Jyll Bradley: Life and Influences
The Box, Plymouth
05 April 2025 to 02 November 2025
-
Wild
Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery
26 July 2025 to 04 January 2026
-
Carolyn Lefley: Ancient Sea
Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery
29 July 2025 to 25 January 2026