Located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the City Reliquary Museum is a civic organization and community establishment that displays New York City artifacts, hosts annual cultural events and rotates community exhibit collections. It’s well worth a visit from nearby Williamsburg apartments such as 420 Kent to get a glimpse of history and a view of some fascinating local items.
It serves as a center that mainly showcases the present and past artifacts of the region. So take a trip from your nearby Williamsburg apartments and see for youself!
Whatever the day or season, you are guaranteed to find ancient and modern relics of a wide variety. Fashion, architecture, art, and history are just a few of the categories of artifacts held in this museum.
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The Williamsburg Reliquary was founded by Dave Herman back in 2002 when he started displaying artifacts on the windows of his ground-floor apartment located on the corner of Grand Street and Havemeyer.
The displays included a collection of souvenir statues, subway tokens, and ephemera baseball cards. This unique and quirky array of artifacts drew the attention of passersby and generated a lot of buzz on the streets. This led to Herman receiving object donations and loans from artists and local residents who wanted to share their relics with the community.
By 2006, Herman’s collection had grown tremendously, so he decided to move the repository to a new non-profit establishment on Metropolitan Avenue.
The Museum was officially opened to the public on 1st April 2006 and featured a collection of Brooklyn Seltzer Bottles, memorabilia from the World’s Fair of 1939, a 1994 blue MetroCard, some bedrock-core samples, and Herman’s souvenir statues among others.
As the museum’s popularity increased over the years, the establishment has come to host artifacts that have a deep historical connection to the city or pivotal events.
Some examples in this category include shrines for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Jackie Robinson or the rope that was used to secure the mourning drape on New York City Hall after the September 11 attacks.
Other Art Collections
In addition to well-known historical memorabilia, the museum still maintains the practice that led to its immense popularity back in the day i.e. it continues to display artwork and other collections from the general population.
Today, it’s not uncommon to see quirky artifacts like vintage thermoses or jumbo pencils from different parts of the world, lining some walls of this prestigious establishm, nt. Unlike the past, everyone is free to contribute their prized collection to the museum.
In addition to the exhibitions, visitors to the museum can also enjoy workshops, film series and special curator talks. Since this is a well-known center, it also serves as a location for meetups with other like-minded individuals with a passion for NYC memorabilia and oddities.
There are also evening events on specific days that feature Q&A’s with some knowledgeable speakers that provide an interesting and enjoyable way of learning about specific aspects of the museum and the exhibits on display.
Hands down, it’s one of the best places to visit near the luxury waterfront Williamsburg apartments of 420 Kent, moments from Domino Park. Don’t miss out on this unique attraction to get a glimpse of some fascinating memorabilia and local stories.
