Pomskizillious Museum of Toys
Small private toy museum in Xagħra with dolls’ houses, dolls, toy soldiers, teddy bears, clockwork toys and nativity figures from the 18th century onwards.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The collection was begun in North Devon in 1965 by Susan Lowe, who later ran the Barum Toy Museum in Barnstaple. In 1992 she and her husband Edwin brought the toys to Gozo for a holiday and decided to stay, and the museum opened in Xagħra. Its unusual name goes back to the writer and painter Edward Lear, who used the word “Pomskizillious” to describe the Gozitan scenery on his visit in 1866.
The collection has grown through gifts, donations and loans from visitors and friends. It includes dolls’ houses from the 1860s, a 1930s English house and the “Pixie Villa” of 1939, Maltese, costume and pedlar dolls, toy soldiers and lead figures, model trains and vehicles such as Hornby and Dinky toys, teddy bears including a Steiff bear of 1908, clockwork toys, a toy theatre, a Vivescope of 1895 and printing sets.
The museum is also known for its nativity figures from Italy and Malta, a late 18th-century Maltese doll with a carved wooden head, a 1930s Noah’s Ark and optical toys of the 1920s and 1930s.
Highlights
- Dolls’ houses from the 1860s and 1930s, including “Pixie Villa” (1939)
- Maltese and costume dolls, including a late 18th-century doll with a carved wooden head
- Toy soldiers, Hornby trains and Dinky vehicles
- Steiff teddy bear of 1908, clockwork toys and a toy theatre
- Italian and Maltese nativity figures
Permanent exhibition
- Collection of toys and dolls’ houses – Dolls’ houses, dolls, toy soldiers, model trains, teddy bears, clockwork toys, a toy theatre and nativity figures from Italy and Malta.
- Founded
- 1992
- Operated by
- Susan and Edwin Lowe
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €2.80 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €1.80Pensioners |
| Children & teens | €1.50Children and students |
| Seniors | €1.80Pensioners |
| Students & apprentices | €1.50 |
| Groups (4+ people) | €2.20 per personPer person: adults in groups of 4 to 12 pay €2.20 and in larger parties €1.80; pensioners pay €1.40 and €1.20; children and students pay €1.20 and €1. |
Prices as published by the museum: adults €2.80, pensioners €1.80, children and students €1.50.
Accessibility
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Kids & families
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Getting there & parking
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Amenities & dining
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Events & venue rental
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