Royal Museum

The Royal Museum is a 1888 -opened Museum of Natural Sciences, Technology and Art in the Chambers Street in Edinburgh. The museum is part of the National Museums of Scotland. The building was designed by Francis Fowke.

In 1998, the Royal Museum was incorporated into the bordering and newly built Museum of Scotland. Both museums together comprise the National Museum of Scotland, which is jointly owned by the National War Museum, the National Museum of Costume, National Museum of Rural Life and the National Museum of Flight at the National Museums of Scotland. Admission to the permanent collection of the Royal Museum is free for temporary exhibitions must be paid admission.

History and Architecture

The construction of the Royal Museum was started in 1861 and continued in phases, architect was Francis Fowke, who had already been involved in the planning of the Royal Albert Hall. Some parts of the museum had been opened, as some phases of construction were not completed. The original building was completed in 1888. The exterior facade held by Fowkes in neo-Renaissance style, stands in contrast to the light-flooded entrance hall, leaning on the porch of the Crystal Palace in London.

Initially presented the museum of many pieces that came from the Museum of the University of Edinburgh. Across the bridge, the museum with the Old College of the University was connected. The students of the university had such access to the museum and cleaned more often to the exhibition. Partly also disappeared exhibits. In the 1870s, has been stolen from the museum prepared for a reception refreshments as part of a student party. Then the museum director had walled up the bridge.

By July 2011, the museum has been extensively renovated ( the estimated cost of the project amounted to £ 46 million ) and increased the exhibition space to previously inaccessible areas.

Permanent exhibition

The exhibition includes objects from the fields of geology, archeology, natural history, science, technology and art. In the permanent exhibition, among other things, the prepared body of the first cloned mammal, Dolly, to see, as well as objects from ancient Egypt, a whale skeleton and modern art, such as a flamboyant suit the singer Elton John. The wings of the building in which the whale skeleton is issued belongs to the closed for renovations areas whose reopening was July 2011.

Special

In the Royal Museum there are regular temporary exhibitions. 2008/2009, the museum is busy with the designer Jean Muir. Past exhibitions have, among other things, the works of Pablo Picasso ( Fired with Passion ), Scottish silver work ( Silver: Made in Scotland ), or the life in the Canadian Subarctic ( Extremes: Life in Subarctic Canada) on the topic.

Learning Centre

The museum has a learning area with classrooms and offers within the exhibition, a museum to try out. So there is the section for art, various experiments and a driving simulator, the wildlife and geology of the area have objects to touch and many stations in which explanatory films. The Learning Centre can take part in workshops and activities for different age groups.