Across the three days, delegates will have multiple opportunities to engage both virtually and in person with Durham-based cultural heritage sites and organisations, including the World Heritage Site, Durham University’s Libraries Museum, Galleries, Gardens, Archives and Special Collections; and The Story Durham, the new home of Durham County Record Office.

Durham University Collections and Venues

Durham University’s unique cultural attractions include Durham Castle, the Oriental Museum, the Botanic Garden, Historic Libraries at Palace Green, Museum of Archaeology and our World Heritage Site Visitor Centre.   All are within walking distance of the DCDC conference venue.

University Library and Collections care for more than 100,000 objects and artworks, over 70,000 books published before 1850, and around 5km of archives, medieval manuscripts, maps, prints and photographs.  We hold 4 Designated Collections: the Egyptian and Chinese collections at the Oriental Museum, the Sudan Archive and Cosin’s Library.

Oriental Museum

The Oriental Museum was founded in 1960, and originally named the Gulbenkian Museum of Oriental Art and Archaeology.  It is home to a huge range of artworks and archaeological artefacts from the great cultures of northern Africa and Asia; more than 40,000 objects in total, ranging in date from prehistory to the present day.  There are galleries dedicated to Ancient Egypt; China; the Himalayas, South Asia and Southeast Asia; Japan; Korea; and in the Silk Roads Gallery works from across tell stories of trade, travel and exchange across the continent of Asia and into Europe, all the way to Durham.

Bill Bryson Library

Bill Bryson Library is named after the University’s former Chancellor, writer Bill Bryson, but is often referred to as “the Billy B”.  It was built in three stages between the 1960s and 1990s, with a further extension in 2012.  It became the University’s main library, in 1983, when the book collections outgrew their original home at Palace Green Library, and won a SCONUL Library Design Award in 1988.

Palace Green Library

Palace Green Library is a complex of buildings, dating from the 15^th to 20^th century.  It formed the centre of Durham University at its founding in 1832 and was the main University library until 1983.  Its identity is now as a focal part of the World Heritage Site between the Castle and the Cathedral.  Palace Green Library is home to the University’s archives and special collections, as well as the World Heritage Site Visitor Centre,  the 17^th century Cosin’s Library, the Museum of Archaeology and temporary exhibition galleries.

During July 2025 there will be a special temporary exhibition about Durham University’s Shakespeare First Folio at Palace Green Library.

Durham Castle

Sitting at the heart of Durham’s World Heritage Site and occupied continuously since the 11th century. Building began, under the orders of William the Conqueror in 1072, by Waltheof, Earl of Northumbria prior to being handed over to Walcher, Bishop of Durham. Durham Castle remained in the hands of successive Bishops for almost 750 years.  Since  1837, the Castle has been home to the students of University College, part of Durham University.  It is regularly open to the public for tours and special events.

Art collections

The University’s art collection includes work by some of the most significant artists of the 20th and 21st centuries.  The collection focuses on print-based media from early methods of woodcut printing to more contemporary screen and digital printing techniques. Material from the art collection can be seen in the Teaching & Learning Centre, Bill Bryson Library, the Oriental Museum, the Palatine building and in the University’s colleges.

Botanic Garden

Durham University’s 10-hectare Botanic Garden is set amongst beautiful mature woodlands on the southern outskirts of Durham city. Open to the public, the Botanic Garden offers a wide variety of landscapes to explore and discover, with guests young and old visiting throughout the year.

There are plant collections from around the world, including China, Japan, North America, South Africa, New Zealand and Chile, as well as a woodland garden, alpine garden and bamboo grove.  Glasshouses provide conditions for tropical and desert-loving plants.

In addition to the exhibitions of local artists’ work frequently displayed in our Visitor Centre, there are sculptures in the Garden itself, hidden within pathways, trees and gullies.

The Story