M is for ... Museum ... n ... Millennia ...

 

According to the International Council of Museums (yes, there is one!) a museum is defined as 'a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.'  There are myriad types of museums -  55,000 of them spread across 220 countries as per the ICOM including art museums, natural history museums, science museums, war museums, textile museums, maritime museums and so on. There are tiny museums with a focus on local history and ones with vast collections which draw millions of visitors from all over the globe.

For myself, I take a vague, mishmash interest in 'heritage' and I take 'enjoyment' very seriously indeed, so museums are my go to for mood upliftment. They are often the starting point of trip planning and actual exploration of a new place. When I can't visit them physically, like in these two un-mentionable ghastly mess of years 2020-21, I visit their websites and browse instead. Many of them provide great resources for research and rabbit holes where one can merrily be lost for hours. This entry is mainly made up of my photos of some museums I have visited. 

Collection of 15th century Islamic glassware at...

...The Bahrain National Museum

Beit al Quran (House of Quran) Bahrain. 

The earliest museums started off as private collections of individuals or institutions, of art objects and curiosities to be displayed in purpose built rooms or cabinets. The very first recorded museum dates from 530 BCE in the Chaldean Empire, built by the Princess Ennigaldi, containing items from earlier Mesopotamian civilisations. Interestingly, a clay drum label was found at this ancient museum site - it describes the recovery and history of a museum artefact in three different languages. Throughout the ages, wealthy individuals - monarchs, landowners and merchants have curated interesting stuff and shown them off to selected, invited guests. A status symbol and an exploration of their worlds past and present.

 

The Colossi of Memnon, Luxor, Egypt. A millennia

old open air museum of one of the earliest civilisations.

Rameses II. Memphis, Egypt.

Master bedroom in Ottoman merchant style.
Gayer Anderson Museum, Cairo, Egypt.

The Boy Jockey. Sculpture at..

...The National Archaeological Museum, Athens.

Socrates. Delphi Museum.

Some of the famous museums visited today were started during the Italian Renaissance. For instance, the Capitoline Museum, the oldest collection of art objects in the world, started off in 1471 when the Pope, Sixtus IV, donated a collection of sculptures to the people of Rome.  Similarly, the Vatican Museums started in 1506 around a nucleus of sculptural objects when Pope Julius II decided to put them up for public display. 

Roman jewellery at National Archaeological Museum,
Amman, Jordan.

Coat of Arms of Pope Gregory. Pope who? that's the
man whose calendar we follow. Vatican Museum.

Musee Rodin. Mind blowing! But not the most

visited in Paris.  That's the Louvre, where the 

Mona Lisa is.

Musee d'Orsay, Paris. Another magnificent one!

Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. One of the largest

collections of European art with over 21,000 works 

spanning 12th to early 20th century.

Modern museums originated in the West and spread to other areas. The British Museum started with donations from Sir Hans Sloane as its founding collection in 1753. It was opened to the public in 1759.  The Louvre, which is a former palace, was opened to the public in 1793. It is the most visited museum in the world with more than 10 million visitors annually, pre-pandemic of course. Incidentally, most of the top globally visited museums have visitors numbers down by 60-80% in 2020 over the previous year. Super concerning!

 

Victoria Memorial. Calcutta, India.

Emperor Ashoka's Edict, 3rd century BCE. Exhibit at the 

Prince of Wales Museum, Mumbai. Now renamed

to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj...sangr%^&*

(unpronounceable Indian word for museum). Why 

everything has to be renamed to the gills beats me

hollow! Rather maddening.

British Museum, London, UK. Must visit! on every trip.

National Museum, Dubai, U.A.E.

Goddess Minerva, deity worshipped at the

Roman Baths, Bath, UK.

Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds, UK.

Japanese netsuke exhibit at the Victoria & Albert

Museum of Art and Design, London, UK.

Father and child. Good job, Dad! That's how we 

learn to make art - by copying the masters. 

Tate Gallery, London, UK.

Family group, 1949-50. Henry Moore. Tate.

Little Dancer, by Edgar Degas at...

..The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC, USA.

Early flag at the Betsy Ross Museum, Philadelphia, USA.

Mesmerised! Guggenheim Museum, NYC, USA.

Motor car at the Car & Carriage Caravan Museum

at Luray, Virginia, USA.

Hopefully, this mad malady will disappear someday soon and visitors can flock back to the museums. I know I will be hotfooting to one as soon as it is safe to do so! I am totally fed up with  being a mouse potato 24/7. One can get awfully tired of looking at screens. Even if that screen contains the marvels from a well known museum.

Corning Glass Museum, Corning, NY, USA.

A-Z Challenge 2021