I visited the Birmingham Museum to see the Staffordshire hoard last September in all its glory and I believe it has now been cleaned up further. This largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever to be found is set to tour Staffordshire this summer, visiting Stafford’s Shire Hall. Lichfield Cathedral and Tamworth castle
Speaking on behalf of the Staffordshire Hoard Partnership, Councillor Hazel Lyth, Stoke-on-Trent City Council's Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture, said "Often with finds of this importance it takes years before they go on public display, so it's just wonderful that we are able to tour pieces from the hoard around the region, so soon after it was discovered. The tour will be a fantastic way to say thank you to the thousands of local people who gave so generously to help Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Stoke on Trent, acquire this exquisite treasure for the nation."
The exhibition will open at Stafford's Shire Hall on 2 July and close on 24 July. It will then visit Lichfield Cathedral, from 29 July to 21 August. Its final stop will be Tamworth Castle, opening on 27 August and closing on 18 September. Entry will be free, and visitor donations will help to continue the work to conserve, research and display the Staffordshire Hoard.
The displays are set to feature more than forty star items from the Staffordshire Hoard, including the pectoral cross, the biblical inscription and the seahorse.
To help bring the exhibition to life, teams at Stafford, Lichfield and Tamworth are working alongside colleagues at Birmingham and Stoke, including skilled conservators, researchers and museum experts. They are fine-tuning the meticulous security arrangements, developing 3D models, and creating displays that will explain the new exciting discoveries that are being uncovered, as part of the work to conserve and research the hoard. The teams are also working to raise the vital funds that will help to stage this six-week Staffordshire tour.
