How 100,000 pieces of Angus history have been brought together under one roof

Thousands of years of Angus history brought together under one roof will soon be available for the public to enjoy.

A building on Brechin Business Park is now home to the Angus collections as their successful relocation was celebrated on Friday.

Angus Alive is guardian of the vast and diverse treasure trove of more than 100,000 objects. Those span millennia and cover everything from social history and fine art to natural sciences and more. Ancient spears share space with old shepherd’s crooks.

The first objects were acquired in the early 1800s by Montrose Natural History and Antiquarian Society, Arbroath Museum Society and former town councils. The collection continues to grow through strategic purchases and generous donations.

Angus Alive says it is looking forwards to taking visitors behind the scenes of the collection for the first time.

The leisure trust was awarded £57,790 from Museums Galleries Scotland for Cabinet of Curiosities: The Inventory Project to log the vast collection.

A new volunteer programme will also be developed at Brechin. It aims to help students and volunteers gain hands-on skills in collections management, curation and preventive conservation.

Museums and galleries collections lead Emma Gilliland said:

“We’re incredibly excited to welcome visitors to our new store and are looking forward to sharing our behind-the-scenes work with the people of Angus.

“We welcome any local Angus businesses, groups or heritage organisations to get in touch if they’d like to collaborate on skills’ development heritage, research projects, or would simply like to book an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour later in the year.”

Bruynzeel storage systems in the Brechin building were supplied by contractors who fitted out the V&A and the Louvre.

It features purpose-built conservation grade shelving and picture racking to protect the huge array of items.

This article appeared in the Courier on 29 August 2026