The Guildhall Museum was built in 1687 and is one of the finest 17th century civic buildings in Kent. The main staircase and principal chamber have magnificently decorated plaster ceilings, given in 1695 by Admiral Sir Cloudsley Shovell who was a Member of Parliament for the city of Rochester at the time. Outside, mounted on the cupola on the roof, is a superb gilded weather-vane in the form of a fully rigged 18th century warship.The model is surprisingly large, measuring some 4ft 6ins long, 1ft wide and has a 5ft tall mast, weighing just over 1cwt. It is made of gilded copper and lead alloy and has weathered the ever changing climates since 1780.The building now houses a museum of Medway’s history, where visitors follow a time-line through the area’s history, aided by visual displays and sound effects. The centrepiece is a two-tier gallery recreating a prison hulk of the Napoleonic period, illustrating the terrible conditions in which prisoners were kept. There are also superb collections of Victoriana on view to the public in the adjoining Conservancy Wing.