Members’ Exhibition Reception - Finding Vinland: Exploring the Possibility of Vikings on Cape Cod

Finding Vinland: Exploring the Possibility of Vikings on Cape Cod

This new exhibition opens at Falmouth Museums on the Green on Thursday, September 3, 2026, with a special members’ reception from 4pm to 6pm, and opens to the public on Friday, September 4. Located in the Visitor’s Center Hallett Barn.

Curated by an advisory panel of scholars and experts from around the world, this fascinating new exhibition explores one of Cape Cod’s most enduring historical mysteries: could Vikings have reached these shores centuries before Columbus? Through archaeology, geography, Native perspectives, and historical scholarship, the exhibition examines the long-debated connections between Cape Cod and the legendary Norse voyages to Vinland. Featuring artifacts, maps, interpretive panels, and local stories, Finding Vinland invites visitors to consider how myth, memory, and evidence intersect in the search for New England’s earliest European encounters. Intimate in scale but global in scope, the exhibition offers a compelling new perspective on Falmouth’s place within the broader story of Atlantic exploration.

The exhibition will include newly commissioned works by Wampanoag artist Julia Marden (Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head, Aquinnah), whose historically accurate traditional craftsmanship offers visitors an authentic connection to the Indigenous culture and lifeways of Cape Cod at the time of the Norse voyages.

We’re delighted to welcome Cape Cod Oyster Company as the presenting sponsor of our newest exhibition! Join us for our Members’ Exhibition Reception on Thursday, September 3, from 4:00–6:00 p.m., where they’ll be serving fresh local oysters alongside bubbly, the perfect way to usher in Labor Day weekend at the museum. Not yet a member? There’s still time to join and be part of this special celebration while supporting the preservation of Falmouth’s history. Join today! 

Opening Reception for Museums on the Green Members. Please pre-register.

Sponsored by: Cape Cod Oyster Co.