Tymperleys

Tymperleys
Interactive map of the Tymperleys area
General information
Location	Colchester, Essex, England
Coordinates	51°53′18.96″N 0°53′56.4″E / 51.8886000°N 0.899000°E / 51.8886000; 0.899000
Year built	15th century

Tymperleys is a Tudor merchant house in Colchester, Essex, England. It has been a Grade II* listed building since 1950.¹

Tymperleys was built in the 1490s for John Tymperleys, steward of the Duke of Norfolk.² The building faces out onto a private garden, accessed from the street via an archway.¹

Tymperleys was the birthplace and family home of physicist William Gilbert,³ now commemorated by a blue plaque.¹

By the 1660s, Tymperleys had been subdivided into six separate cottages,⁴ and around this time an exterior staircase was added.⁵

In the 1950s the building was purchased by Bernard Mason, who renovated it significantly, and opened a clock museum on the premises in 1987. With 216 clocks and 12 watches, the museum housed one of the largest collections in Britain.⁵

Following Mason's death, the building was left to Colchester City Council. The clock museum closed in 2011, with parts of the collection moved to nearby Hollytrees Museum.⁵

As of 2026, Tymperleys is home to a bookshop,⁴ a tea room, and is available for hire as a wedding venue.⁶