Chocolate exhibition opens at York Castle Museum

An exhibition has recently opened at York Castle Museum that looks into the history of chocolate and sweets.

The exhibition, Chocolate: York's Sweet Past, is now open to the public and will be running until 5th January 2018. It covers the sweet decadence of the Georgians to the obscure delicacies of the Victorians, through to the swinging sixties.

On display will be a sweet and chocolate collection which includes rarely seen before advertising and packaging for brands such as Kit Kat, After Eight, Yorkie and Terry’s Chocolate Orange.

The exhibition will also feature sweet making moulds and tools and even a tin of cocoa which went on polar explorer Shackleton’s expedition to the Antarctic.

During holiday periods, there will also be sweet and chocolate making demonstrations taking place in the Chocolate Factory.

Discover sugar highs throughout history 

The experience will allow visitors to explore the ways in which different generations have satisfied their sweet tooth.

Visitors will start in the museum’s Period Rooms where the Georgian, Victorian and the Jacobean rooms will be filled with sweet delicacies.

Visitors will then head to the Toy Gallery to find a sweet making machine before entering the Chocolate Factory where you can discover what it was like to work in York’s factories, as well as the skills required to do certain jobs in chocolate and sweet production.

A sweet shop will also open on the recreated street, Kirkgate, showing chocolates and sweets from Terry’s, Rowntrees and Craven’s. And a World War One exhibition called 1914: When the World Changed Forever will look at how the Rowntree’s family were affected by war.

Katie Brown, assistant curator of history at the museum, said: “We can’t wait to pick highlights from our huge assortment of rich and exciting chocolate and sweets artefacts and to put them on show for people to enjoy.   

Group rates are available at York Castle Museum and various activities can also be arranged by contacting groupbookings@ymt.org.uk .

For more information, visit www.yorkcastlemuseum.org.uk.