ENTRY into Hereford’s Black and White House Museum will be free on Saturday (September 7) as part of this year’s Heritage Open Days.

Heritage Open Days are a national celebration that encourages people to explore history and culture, as well as

to discover the hidden gems they may have not previously visited.

Visitors to the Black and White House Museum will be able to immerse themselves into what life was like during Jacobean times.

The museum features a range of exhibits, artwork, furniture and models, as well as activities for children.

Among its art collection are two 400-year-old paintings, which last year underwent a delicate and intricate restoration.

The wall paintings relate to the Book of Genesis and the story involving Joseph and Pharaoh. It is believed they date to the late 16th century and derive from a series of four woodcuts, on the theme of the Joseph story, included in a book of biblical stories produced by Virgil Solis and first published in Nuremburg in 1562.

The paintings originally came from a house at No 5 Widemarsh Street in Hereford where they were discovered in 1888. They were removed from their original location and installed in the Black and White House in 1947. 

Built in 1621, the house has been used for many purposes over the centuries, starting its life as a butcher's home and shop. It eventually because a branch of Lloyds Bank until the late 1920s.

In 1929 it officially opened as a museum and has for the past 90 years given visitors an extraordinary insight into daily life in Jacobean times.

On Saturday, the museum will be open from 10am to 4pm.