Dominica Museum

The Dominica Museum was built in 1810 and is situated on the quayside of Roseau, near the old market.  The Dominica Museum was originally the Market House, an old market building and from its construction has served as a post office.  It contains many items pertaining to the cultural and social history of Dominica, as well as its geology and archaeology.  There are pieces of colonial furniture, specimens of birds and fishes, timeline panels outlining the history, and sections dedicated to Jean Rhys and to Phyllis Shand Allfrey.  The Museum owes much to the work of Dr Lennox Honychurch, the great historian of the Caribbean.

One item is the Silver Mace, given by the first British Governor, Sir William Young, Bt, over 200 years ago.  It is adorned with the cypher of George III, the English rose, the Scottish thistle and the Welsh harp as well as the colonial coat of arms of Dominica.  It represents the former authority of the British monarch over the local legislature.