17th March 2020
Pen Museum to close temporarily
Birmingham’s Pen Museum in the Jewellery Quarter is to close temporarily from Wednesday 18 March 2020 following Government announcement. The decision was made by Trustees of the museum to ensure the safety and well-being of volunteers and visitors and helping in the efforts to reduce the spread of the Corona Virus also known as COVID 19.
The Pen Museum is almost exclusively run by its 20 loyal volunteers who are vital in keeping the Museum open for visitors and the preserving the heritage of the pen making industry in Birmingham when the city produced over 80% of the world’s Pen nibs.
Andy Munro, Chair of Birmingham Pen Museum and the Jewellery Quarter Museums and Attractions Co-ordinating Committee said;
“The Pen Museum will close temporarily until late summer. It has been a hard decision to make. We know how much the volunteers and visitors value the museum and how disappointed they will be. But we know this is the right thing to do. We also want to help the wider effort in preventing the spread of the Corona Virus (COVID 19).
“We see this as a temporary situation and are optimistic for our re-opening and have already started thinking and planning how we can do that with a special event or exhibit.”
At its height Birmingham’s Pen Industry made 80% of the worlds Pen nibs and exported around the globe. The museum has over 7,000 visitors per annum and is housed in the Argent Centre, which is on the site of the original cottage where the famous American Author Washington Irving wrote Rip van Winkle and began Sleepy Hollow.