Crowds filled Chambers Street, Edinburgh, on the morning of the 29th July to enjoy the opening ceremony of the newly restructured National Museum. The appearance amidst the crowd of a dinosaur emerging from under a green tarpaulin set the note: this museum is something for all the family, very child-friendly.
All day the museum was crowded with families, many of them with their youngest in push-chairs, enjoying the "bigger, better National Museum of Scotland", as the Master of Ceremonies described it in his short opening speech.
The restoration and extension project was designed by RAA (Ralph Appelbaum Associates), the world's largest exhibition design firm, which, in the description of Bradford A. McKee (Architecture Magazine 2002) "made museums sexy again". This one is not sexy, but definitely visitor-friendly and exciting.
Since there is so much varied material to see, and since admittance is free, it is a good idea to take two or three bites at the cherry, if time permits. Free guided tours are also available.
The visit can start either from the main entrance in Chambers Street, which goes straight into a large hall with open galleries above, or through the entrance to Benson & Forsyth's new building. For a first visit, try taking the elevator to the top floor of the new tower, go to the panoramic terrace for a fine view of the city, then work your way down the tower, through:
- Scotland: A changing nation
- Industry and Empire
- Scotland Transformed
- Kingdom of the Scots
Then go back to the open gallery at Level 5, and work your way around, and down through the Galleries at Level 3 and Level 1, back to the large entrance hall.
Science and Technology
Scientists and inventors are among Scotland's most illustrious children, and the National Museum presents large and small exhibits which should be of inspiration to the future generations.These are broadly defined into the following areas:
- instruments and measuring apparatus, lighthouse optics
- transport
- communications
- industry and engineering collections, civil, mechanical, medical, mining and mineral processing
Exhibits range from the Schmidt telescope used in Edinburgh's Observatory until 1970 (a 3.2 tonne telescope invented in 1930 by Berhard Schmidt, a Swedish-Estonian optician, which contained a spherical mirror and a thin aspheric lens as a corrector plate) to the stuffed body of Dolly the sheep, the first cloned mammal to be created from an adult cell.
The industrial area contains a number of looms, whisky distilling equipment, models of trains and ships, working engines.
Natural World
One of the Museum's proudest possessions is the life-size cast of a Tyrannosaurus Rex found in Montana. It is in Animal World, Level 1, in the company of a model white shark, a triceratops skull and many other strange creatures.
Large chunks of meteorites can be touched, including a piece of muoinonalusta meteorite of 170 kg. from Kitkiojoeki, Sweden, composed of 91.5% iron and 8.5% nickel, part of a much larger meteor that broke up entering the earth's atmosphere 800,000 years ago.
Scotland
Being Scotland's National Museum, there are rich sections with exhibits of mainly Scottish interest, from the Hunterston brooch (made around 700 AD) to Bonnie Prince Charlie's silver travelling canteen.
The museum also owns 11 pieces of the Lewis chessmen (the rest belong to the British Museum). These fascinating little pieces, carved out of walrus tusks, are currently "on tour" like the real celebrities they are. Various controversies about their origin go on among scholars: were they carved in Trondheim, Norway, or were they really Icelandic? Were they buried on Lewis by a travelling Norse merchant, or had they been given as a present to a local lord? In any case they are a reminder that the Western Isles were once part of the Kingdom of Norway, and they are really fun!
Undoubtedly Scottish is the Inchkeith lighthouse optic in the Grand Gallery. This optic was designed by David A. Stevenson in 1889 for Inchkeith Island in the Firth of Forth. David A. Stevenson was a grandson of the great lighthouse engineer, Robert Stevenson. Another, more famous, grandson of Robert Stevenson has his place in this same museum: Robert Louis Stevenson, author of such favourites as "Treasure Island", "Kidnapped" and "Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde".
Other collections
Ancient Egypt on Level 3 contains the coffin of an Egyptian Queen, dating from around 1550 BC, and beautiful masks and coffins.
World Cultures
Here among rich exhibits is the chance to play four original musical instruments specially created by Viktor Gama.
Lunch-time Concerts
During the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, there are 45-minute free lunchtime concerts, every day until 26th August 2011.
To get the most from this very varied Museum, it would be ideal to plan ahead and have a list of items to see.
The Museum has some disabled parking parking spaces in Chambers Street, ground access and wheelchairs available, is well provided with elevators, toilets, and several cafés. Special tours can be arranged for visually impaired visitors.
It's open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Admission is free, donations are welcome.
Valerie Wilson - Valerie Wilson has lived, studied and worked in Scotland, Germany and Italy; mainly employed in multi-national companies in shipping ...
