Exhibitions to take you to the moon and back

Exhibitions which take visitors to the moon and back to earth and invite you to discover more about our nation’s rich heritage go on show this week in three of our cathedrals.

Ely Cathedral opened its spectacular science event – The Sky’s the Limit – at the weekend to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing and explore what the future holds for humanity. And just in case you forget what the exhibition is all about, just look upwards to find artist Luke Jerram’s stunning Museum of the Moon, a seven metre diameter lunar replica, hovering above the Cathedral’s nave.

You can explore the wonders of space through themed activity nights, and interactive ‘space’ exhibition including space suits and meteorites. Experience the National Space Centre’s Star Dome and immerse yourself in talks on space travel, aliens and the future of our planet given by leading experts including the Astronomer Royal and presenters from The Sky at Night.

More information about the science event, which runs from 18 May to 9 June 2019 can be found here.

In Winchester – once the capital city of England up to the Norman Conquest – the Cathedral opened its exciting new exhibition ‘Kings and Scribes – The Birth of a Nation’ this week. Built across four new galleries and ten years in the planning, this landmark exhibition will highlight some of the nation’s greatest treasures and reveal the city’s pivotal role in shaping our heritage.

Thanks to a grant of £11.2 million from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and donations from other generous supporters, this new three-level exhibition space will take visitors on a journey through over 1,000 years of history, from the birth of the English nation to the present day.

It includes one of the nation’s greatest treasures, the Winchester Bible. This manuscript is the largest and finest of all surviving 12th-century English bibles, renowned for its sheer size, rarity and artistry.

More information about the new exhibition, which opens on Tuesday 21 May (opening times. 10 – 4pm) and will then be open daily can be found here.

This weekend sees the opening of the popular River Festival Liverpool and Liverpool Cathedral is proud to see a return by British artist Luke Jerram with his 23ft replica installation of the earth.

The artwork, called ‘Gaia’, will hang in the Grade I listed building and features accurate and detailed NASA imagery of the earth and will be complemented with a sound composition created by BAFTA and Ivor Novello award-winning composer Dan Jones.

Gaia will be open to the public from Saturday 25 May, a week before the free festival takes place on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 June, and will be in the cathedral until Saturday 23 June.

There will be a programme of events and talks under the earth – keep an eye on Liverpool Cathedral’s website.

The artwork forms part of the ‘Changing Tides’ creative programme, which last year saw the Museum of the Moon installed in the Cathedral, attracting over 60,000 visitors in just under two weeks.

The Very Rev’d Dr Sue Jones, Dean of Liverpool, said: “It’s a great joy to be able to host another amazing installation at Liverpool Cathedral.
“Last year, witnessing so many people enjoy the beautiful Museum of the Moon, reminded me that we really are a focal point for the city and a place for the city to come together and experience something truly outstanding.”

Artist and Gaia creator, Luke Jerram, said: “I hope visitors to the Earth in Liverpool get to see our planet as if from space, as a floating fragile ball of life, an incredibly beautiful and precious ecosystem. A place we urgently need to look after – our only home.”

GAIA opens in Liverpool Cathedral on Saturday 25 May and can be visited until 23 June 2019.