Mint Museum of Art

2730 Randolph Rd., Charlotte
704/337-2000
www.mintmuseum.org [1]

HOURS: Tues. 10 a.m.–10 p.m., Wed.–Sat. 10 a.m.–5 p.m.,
Sun. noon–5 p.m.

COST: $10 adults, $8 college students and seniors (65+) with ID, $5 children 5–17, free children 4 and under;
free on Tues. 5–9 p.m.; admission valid for both
Mint Museum of Art and Mint Museum of Craft + Design [2] on same day

The Mint Museum is aptly named, as it is housed in the former first branch of the United States Mint, where $5 million in gold was coined between 1836 and the outbreak of the Civil War. The building was designed by William Strickland and saved from demolition when it was moved to its present site in 1936. It was the first art museum in North Carolina.

The museum houses several permanent collections and rotating exhibits. Following the completion of a new 145,000-square-foot space in October 2010, the Mint Museum will split its collection between two museums. The original Mint Museum on Randolph Road will continue to house the ceramics, historic costume, coins and currency collections as well as pre-Columbian and Spanish Colonial works. The new museum, which will open in Uptown as part of the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus, will house collections of American art, contemporary art, and craft and design.

The Mint Museum attracts national and international touring exhibits and hosts seminars, lectures, and art classes. Guided tours are available.