Adopt an artefact
Protect remarkable objects from our past, for the future.
From an original Victorian ship’s biscuit to a UNESCO designated engineering report; the objects in our collection require complex and specialised conservation so they can be used to tell important stories about our past.
Whether for yourself, or as a gift, by choosing adoption you are playing a crucial role in protecting the heritage items in our collection and supporting our other charitable work. When you choose to adopt an artefact, you are supporting both the conservation of your chosen artefact and wider work bringing heritage to life for everyone.
How does it work?
- Choose from the list of objects below to donate. Adoption ranges from £25 to £300.
- Once completed, we will send you an adoption pack by post.
- Come to site and see your artefact in person!
Please note: This is a virtual adoption, and so you will not receive the physical artefact.
If your adoption is a gift, please contact the Development Team on 0117 462 3125 or
development@bristoldockyards.org
Please provide the name and contact details of the recipient so the pack can be sent to them directly.
- One of the final tickets issued for SS Great Britain.
- Bought by Ian Bell for a crossing of Bristol Harbour on 19 July 1970 – the ship’s last journey.
- Marked its return to the original dock, exactly 127 years after its launch in 1843.
- Six-panel peep show of Marc Brunel’s Thames Tunnel.
- Cover shows the Thames with riverside buildings and boats.
- Unfolds to reveal a 3D view of people walking through the tunnel.
- Likely published in the early 1830s during construction; French edition with text on the cover.
- Diary of Rachel Henning, who travelled to Australia on SS Great Britain in 1861.
- Produced by Bristol bookseller I. E. Chillcott, it records her experiences on board.
- Part of ongoing work to share more stories of women at sea.
- Early drawing of a horse by a young Brunel, likely his earliest surviving work.
- Inscribed by Marc Brunel, proudly adding his son’s name in the top corner.
- Private diary of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, written between October 1827 and April 1829.
- Kept in his early twenties, revealing his thoughts, emotions and ambitions.
- Includes accounts of the Thames Tunnel and the accident that nearly took his life.
- Portable cigar case belonging to Isambard Kingdom Brunel, containing what is believed to be his “last cigar”.
- Made of black leather, stamped ‘I.K.B Athenaeum Club Pall Mall’.
- Holds up to 48 cigars and is thought to represent a single day’s supply in his later years.
Thank you to everyone who has adopted
explore the collections
Learn more about the remarkable collections we protect at Bristol Dockyards.