Half term activities with a witch bottle trail and corn dolly crafting inspired by the 'Folklore' exhibition, included with museum admission.
The Museum of Cambridge is running a series of half term activities around its new exhibition, Folklore, which opened on 16 October and runs through to 3 May 2027. The activities — a Witch Bottle trail and corn dolly crafting — are included with admission and run throughout the October half term, with the specific date of 24 October falling right in the middle of that window.
Folklore pulls together stories, myths and legends from Cambridge, Cambridgeshire and beyond, and it's built around tales of people, magic, medicine and the things that still can't quite be explained. A good chunk of what's on display comes from the collection of Enid Porter, the museum's curator from 1947 to 1976. Among her pieces are witches' bottles, used to ward off witches, and moles' paws carried by Fenmen for good health. Those sit alongside never-before-seen artworks and tales that people are still telling today, with contemporary pieces inspired by the objects displayed next to community contributions of modern folklore. It's a broad look at the kind of things that linger in the local imagination, from the old superstitions of the Fens to the folklore we're still making now.
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The half term activities grow out of that, with the corn dolly crafting and the Witch Bottle trail taking their lead from the objects in the show. They're hosted in the Enid Porter Room, a purpose-built event space within the museum. If you're visiting with children, there's a large print guide and SEND sensory totes available free of charge at the desk. Standard entry is £7.70, and children 16 and under go in free, so the activities are included in that. You'll find the museum at 2-3 Castle Street, CB3 0AQ, in the heart of the city.
