Dates announced! The Merchant Adventurers’ Charity Beer Festival will be back on Friday 4 July and Saturday 5 July 2025.  Taking place at the stunning Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, the festival will be split across four sessions.  The event is a unique opportunity to...

A series of drawings by a York artist have shone a light on one of the city’s most important buildings and its continuing links with the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall. In July 2024 a group of drawings were donated to the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall of Lady Peckett’s Yard....

The Merchant Adventurers' Hall celebrates its first Woman Governor with a specially commissioned photo portrait     In 2022, the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall appointed Dr Delma Tomlin, DUniv, MBE as its Governor, the first woman in the role since its foundation in...

Explore the Hall in a new way with our new digital guide! Launching this Easter, our new guide features the Hall's captivating 667 years of history to enrich both onsite and offside visits.   This Easter, the Hall has launched a new, digital guide on Bloomberg...

In 2023, the Company of Merchant Adventurers and the Borthwick Institute for Archives at the University of York entered into a partnership where the Company's archive; one of the oldest and most significant collections of documents in the city would move from the Hall...

On Wednesday 27th September we explored the history of York in 6 paintings! We heard from Lauren Marshall, Director of the Merchant Adventurers' Hall who told us about which building in York had Yorkshire's first public toilets and other fascinating stories; through...

In celebration of the Coronation of King Charles III, we are delving into the past to discover some of the treasures in the Hall’s collections made in the lifetimes of King Charles I, King Charles II and King Charles III. We will also explore how these momentous and...

In celebration of the Coronation of King Charles III, we are delving into the past to discover some of the treasures in the Hall’s collections made in the lifetimes of King Charles I, King Charles II and King Charles III. We will also explore how these momentous and...

In celebration of the Coronation of King Charles III, we are delving into the past to discover some of the treasures in the Hall’s collections made in the lifetimes of King Charles I, King Charles II and King Charles III. We will also explore how these momentous and...

We are certain that for most of you, this information doesn't come as a surprise but we now have a fantastic study to back it up; visiting the Merchant Adventurers' Hall is good for your health!   The study, conducted in early 2022 by Amy Luck and Dr Faye Sayer...

This post was published in June 2022. In celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen, we are delving into the past to meet some of the Merchant Adventurers making waves during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth II and her namesake, Queen Elizabeth I. From...

This post was published in June 2022. In celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen, we are delving into the past to meet some of the Merchant Adventurers making waves during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth II and her namesake, Queen Elizabeth I. From...

This post was published in June 2022. In celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen, we are delving into the past to meet some of the Merchant Adventurers making waves during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth II and her namesake, Queen Elizabeth I. From...

This post was published in June 2022. In celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen, we are delving into the past to meet some of the Merchant Adventurers making waves during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth II and her namesake, Queen Elizabeth I. From...

The Merchant Adventurers’ Hall has accumulated many treasures over the centuries: art, artefacts, architecture and the stories of those who have passed through its walls. This series seeks to shine a spotlight on the Hall’s incredible collections.   Carved out of...

The Merchant Adventurers’ Hall has accumulated many treasures over the centuries: art, artefacts, architecture and the stories of those who have passed through its walls. This series seeks to shine a spotlight on the Hall’s incredible collections.     The...

Within the silver collection of the Merchant Adventurers' Hall are a number of large silver cups which are known as 'Loving Cups'. These are used yearly at the Merchant Adventurers' Venison Feast within a ceremony which is a symbol of friendship and fraternity....

For this blog post we are looking the stained glass windows which can be found in the Undercroft, Chapel and the Governor's Parlour of the Merchant Adventurers' Hall. The Hall has a small but beautiful collection of stained glass windows dating from the last 150...

It is perhaps a surprise to many to find out that women have played an active role in The Company of Merchant Adventurers since its foundation in 1357. There are three in particular who lived remarkable lives and feature in the extensive archive of the Guild.  ...

For this blog post we are looking at the Undercroft...a space very different from the grand surroundings of the Great Hall. This space was never designed to be used by the merchants but for the sick and poorer member of York's society, many of which had fallen on hard...

When you're over 660 years old you've witnessed quite a bit of history. So here below is the second part of our list of some of the important dates in the Merchant Adventurers' Hall history. As well as a few choice snippets from further afield...   1626 St...

When you're over 660 years old you've witnessed quite a bit of history. So here below is a list of some of the important dates in the Merchant Adventurers history. As well as a few choice snippets from further afield...   1357      Construction begins on the...

The Merchant Adventurers' Hall has accumulated many treasures over the centuries: art, artefacts, architecture and the stories of those who have passed through its walls. This series seeks to shine a spotlight on the Hall's incredible collections.   Part of what...

In 1356 Sir William Percy granted a plot of land - a former Norman manorial site by the River Foss, and the future location of the Merchant Adventurers' Hall - to three merchants from York...or did he?   In this new, thoroughly researched book, David Brewer...

The Merchant Adventurers' Hall has accumulated many treasures over the centuries: art, artefacts, architecture and the stories of those who have passed through it's walls. This blog series seeks to shine a spotlight on the Hall's incredible collections and individuals...

The Merchant Adventurers' Hall has accumulated many treasures over the centuries: art, artefacts, architecture and the stories of those who have passed through it's walls. This blog series seeks to shine a spotlight on some of the Hall's incredible collections. In...