In Conversation with Elizabeth McCrum and current Curator of Textiles and Fashion, Charlotte McReynolds.
Join Elizabeth McCrum and current Curator of Textiles and Fashion, Charlotte McReynolds, as they reflect on the loss of the museum’s original costume and textile collection and the extraordinary effort to rebuild it.
On 11 November 1976, a devastating fire at Malone House in South Belfast, then used to store the Ulster Museum’s fashion collection, resulted in the near-total destruction of its original costume and textile archive.
At the time, Elizabeth McCrum, a young Fashion and Textiles Curator, was faced with the immense challenge of rebuilding the collection from the ground up. Only one piece survived: the Lennox quilt, which had been on display elsewhere when the fire occurred.
Today, the restored collection is on view at the Ulster Museum as part of the Ashes to Fashion exhibition.
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Visitor information
Address
Botanic Gardens, Belfast, County Antrim, BT9 5AB
02890 440000
Opening times
Tues – Sun,10am – 5pm Closed Mondays (except NI Bank Holidays)
Exclusions and safety measures
Closed Mondays (except on NI Bank Holidays)
