Hunterian Museum, Glasgow, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

The Hunterian Museum is the oldest public museum in Scotland, set inside the University of Glasgow's main building on Gilmorehill in the West End of Glasgow. It grew from the collection of the physician William Hunter and today holds Roman finds from the Antonine Wall, scientific instruments, natural history and more. It is a rewarding stop for anyone curious about how Glasgow became a city of learning and invention.

The story behind it

William Hunter was born in Lanarkshire in 1718 and studied at the University of Glasgow before making his name as a London physician and anatomist. When he died in 1783 he left his large collection of anatomical specimens, coins, books and curiosities to the university, and the museum that bears his name opened to the public in the early 1800s. It later moved to the Gothic Revival building on Gilmorehill, where it still sits.

The museum also looks after some of the best finds from the Antonine Wall, the Roman frontier begun around 142 CE under Emperor Antoninus Pius. It was built across Scotland's narrow central belt, close to Glasgow, and it was later than Hadrian's Wall to the south. Antoninus never visited Britain himself. The university has other famous names too: James Watt worked here as an instrument maker in the 1750s, and the engineering buildings now carry his name. Nearby, the interiors of Charles Rennie Mackintosh's former home, which was demolished in the 1960s, were carefully reassembled in the Hunterian Art Gallery across the road.

What to look for

• The Roman distance stones from the Antonine Wall, carved slabs that recorded how much of the wall each legion had built.
• The spires and towers of the Gilbert Scott building, which dominate the skyline above Kelvingrove Park and the River Kelvin.
• The cloisters beneath the main building, a atmospheric corridor that has appeared on screen in productions such as Outlander.
• The Mackintosh House interiors in the neighbouring Hunterian Art Gallery, a reconstruction of the architect's own home.

Tips for your visit

• Allow an hour or two for the museum, longer if you add the art gallery and the Mackintosh House.
• Check current opening hours and whether any galleries or exhibitions need a ticket before you go.
• Kelvingrove Park and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum are a short walk away, and Byres Road is close for coffee or lunch.
• Go earlier in the day for quieter galleries, and keep time for a stroll around the university grounds.

See it on a quest

Historic Glasgow: The Testing of Thomas passes the Hunterian on foot as one stop on a longer route through the city's past. The app tells you about the place as you arrive and sets a puzzle based on what is in front of you, so you look at the building rather than just walk by it. One ticket covers the whole group, and you can start whenever suits you.