Opening Date Announced For New Arms And Armor Galleries At The Worcester Art Museum 

Worcester, MA—April 15, 2025—The Worcester Art Museum (WAM) announced that its new Arms and Armor Galleries will open to the public on November 22, 2025, presenting this collection—the second largest of its kind in the United States—in a specially designed, 5,000-square-foot gallery space. The Museum will celebrate this milestone with a series of themed public programs, collaborations, after-hours parties, and new benefits for Worcester Art Museum Members. Timed-entry reservations will be required for all visitors to the Arms and Armor Galleries, available through the Museum’s website starting October 22, 2025 at noon ET.  

Centrally located on the Museum’s second floor, these new galleries will present more than 1,000 objects—from medieval and Renaissance Europe alongside pieces from ancient Greece, Egypt, Japan, India, and beyond—and will showcase the remarkable global and historical breadth of this collection, one of the finest of its kind in the world. Upon entering the front gallery, audiences will engage with dramatic arms and armor displays with star objects, including a full suit of armor made in 1554 for Austrian nobleman Franz von Teuffenbach, a 17th-century Japanese helmet in the form of a conch shell, and the ceremonial suit of armor once worn by samurai Sakai Genzo.  

The rear gallery will have the look and feel of open storage, accommodating the wide array of objects—from swords and shields, to helmets and other body armor—giving visitors a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what museums do to preserve and share these objects. This space has also been designed to support an array of new hands-on programming and demonstrations for visitors. And in keeping with the Museum’s other arms and armor installations, the new galleries will also integrate non-arms artworks that will enhance the narratives and connections across cultures and periods. 

“I am excited that we are able to share the date for the opening of these new galleries, the product of a major series of construction and installation projects at the Museum, all aimed at bringing our arms and armor collection into public view,” said Matthias Waschek, the Museum’s Jean and Myles McDonough Director. “What began in 2013 with our Knights! exhibition, and included the redesign and reinstallation of our Medieval art galleries in 2016, has finally culminated in a permanent home worthy of this exceptional collection. I want to thank our staff, who have been and continue to do outstanding work to bring this project to fruition. I likewise want to thank our many donors who allowed us to undertake the most significant reshaping of the Worcester Art Museum in decades.”  

To ensure visitor comfort and safety, timed reservations will be required for all visitors to the Arms and Armor Galleries. Timed reservations can be added to a general admission ticket at no extra charge. Admission for Members will be free and require reservations, which will be scheduled using the same online system and ask each Member to use their Member login credentials in order to enable this benefit. Starting October 22 at noon ET, reservations will be available at worcesterart.org. Following the initial release, time slots will become available every Wednesday at noon ET eight weeks in advance of entry date. A limited number of same-day timed reservations for walk-in visitors may be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Reservations are not required to visit the rest of the Museum, which will continue to offer a diverse range of art and exhibitions. Youth ages 17 under visit free, including the Arms and Armor Galleries. More information and updates about how to visit can be found at worcesterart.org. 

In addition to free admission, Worcester Art Museum Members will enjoy several new benefits related to the new galleries, including the opportunity to visit the galleries before they open to the public during a Member Preview November 15–21, during the Museum’s regular hours, which will be kicked off by a Member-exclusive evening celebration on Friday, November 14. Reservations for the Member Preview and the Member party will be available starting October 15 at noon ET. Once the galleries open to the public, the Museum will offer Member-only hours to the Arms and Armor Galleries every Saturday morning, 10–noon. More information about membership can be found at worcesterart.org. Ongoing themed public programs will include tours, demonstrations, talks, and after-hours events. The schedule of related events and registration information will be available at worcesterart.org.   

WAM’s new Arms and Armor Galleries will occupy what was previously the Museum’s library, a generous space with 16-foot-high ceilings and arched windows, and an adjacent area that had been used for temporary exhibitions. The library was relocated to a newly created space in the Museum’s Higgins Education Wing, and reopened there in 2022—clearing the way for construction to begin, to convert this space into the Arms and Armor Galleries. Gallery designs are by TSKP x IKD, in collaboration with Jeffrey L. Forgeng, the Higgins Curator of Arms and Armor and Medieval Art at WAM, and Museum leadership, with significant contributions from scholars, educators, and organizational partners. On April 27 at 2 pm, Forgeng will give a talk at the Museum about what it takes to bring these long-awaited new galleries to life.  

In April 2024, the Museum shared the design plans and renderings for the new galleries, along with a list of some of the highlight objects visitors can expect to see. The Museum’s new Arms and Armor Galleries is a cornerstone project of the Museum’s comprehensive campaign, supported in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and National Endowment for the Humanities, underscoring the national importance of this collection and innovation of the Museum’s presentation. A full list of project funders, consultants, and partners is available at www.worcesterart.org/about/building/arms-and-armor-gallery. In addition, the Museum has raised the funds needed to endow its Curator of Arms and Armor position, ensuring the long-term success of this role in working with this key collection. 

The Museum’s ongoing comprehensive campaign, A Bold Step Forward, with a goal of $125 million to be raised by 2028, is providing the funding needed to improve and modernize Worcester Art Museum facilities, strengthen programming and operations, grow the endowment to ensure long-term financial strength, and allow the Museum to connect with new audiences and broaden the narratives told through art. To learn more, visit www.worcesterart.org/join-give/bold-step-forward. 

Public support for this project is provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Fund, a program of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, co-administered by MassDevelopment and the Mass Cultural Council. For a full list of funders, please visit the Arms and Armor Galleries page on the Museum’s website.  

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