The ethnology collection ranks among the top six collections in the country.

The four main areas represented are:

• Africa, with a particularly strong selection of West and Central African items
• the Americas, with important collections from the Arctic, Northwest Coast of North America, Mesoamerica, and the Amazon
• Oceania, with much material from New Guinea, Fiji, the Solomon Islands and New Zealand
• Asia, one of the largest and strongest collections in the UK, including material from China, Japan, Tibet, the Indian sub-continent, and South East Asia

The numismatic collection was founded in 1865 with the purchase of 900 British coins and tokens from a local collector, Rupert Jackson. The collection suffered serious losses during the Second World War but was augmented by subsequent purchases. The collection now holds nearly 18,000 items, including Greek, Roman and European coins.

The Egyptian collection is the most important single component of the department's collections, comprising nearly 15,000 items. Several thousands of these are from the original Mayer donation in 1867 and are thus of major antiquarian interest. The collection was systematically enhanced through subscription to excavations undertaken in the later years of the 19th century by the Egypt Exploration Society. It was further developed through links with the Institute of Archaeology at Liverpool University. Unfortunately, several large-scale Egyptian sculptures displayed in the entrance hall were devastated during the blitz.

The material from Beni Hasan, excavated by John Garstang and now on loan to the museum, is an example of an important early group with a local connection. The collection is significant in national and international terms. There is still great potential for research in this material and the museum's links with Liverpool University continue to produce excellent work which has been incorporated wherever possible into formal post-graduate study under the museum's supervision.

The Near Eastern collection comprises some 14,000 objects from a variety of important sites in the Near East. Again there is a local connection through the excavations of John Garstang. The collections have also been systematically developed through subscription to recent work, including field surveys and by the museum's own excavations.

The Cypriot collection of approximately 650 pieces of prehistoric pottery, terracotta and sculpture owes its strength to the involvement of J H Iliffe, a former museum director, in excavations in Cyprus in the 1950s. It is important because few other museums in the UK hold comparable material.

Touch, explore and learn about the past and present human worlds in a new hands-on centre.