A Pitiful Attempt to Contain the British Museum in a Single Blog Post

What's the first thing you might notice about the British Museum? It's humongous! The museum map at first glance is bigger than my hand and longer than an octave on a piano (how far my hand stretches lengthwise), then proceeds to fold out to almost three times that size. And that's a bare minimum map, with small print correlating to numbered exhibits so as to take up the smallest amount of space possible. I actually didn't end up using the map very much at all, because it was easier to just wander and see what you found.
I spent almost an entire day in the museum, managed to see most things, and only sat down for about 10 minutes while in there. Well, 20 minutes, if you want to count when I stopped for lunch in a cafeteria corner of the Great Hall, pictured here courtesy of Wikipedia.

They've got just about everything in the British Museum, enough to fill a couple other museums. They even had the stairwells filled; in the one that I used, the walls were covered with tile murals from the 2nd century and beyond. It was slow going, because everyone wanted to rub the murals as they passed. The only gap I could name in their collection was American items, the only items from the North American continent that I found being Native American traditional-type materials and a couple of dishes from the Arts and Crafts/Art Deco period. Oh, and a Mastodon jaw found near the Ohio river, which was one of the first ever found and was nicknamed "the Unknown American." The British Museum owns something of everything and everyone else.

As I might have said before, the majority of my visit to the British Museum was spent wandering hither and thither. I started out in the Enlightenment gallery, which contained not only treasured from the Enlightenment itself, but also artifacts from whatever the enlightened were interested in. As you can see in this picture from Wikipedia (which will be switched later for my own pictures, so please return in August), not only do the tables have artifacts in them, but the lower compartments feature larger items, and the bookcases in the wall are filled with even more items. I saw about half a dozen ancient helmets, various statues from the different periods in question, the only nest specimen to survive from Captain Cook's voyages (that of a Glittering-bellied Emerald Hummingbird, which happened to have been packed with the plant samples). This was where the "unknown American" mastodon jaw was kept, along with some of the other first specimens of mastodons and ichthyosaurs. They always say that people kept women out of the history books, but it was a woman, Mary Anning, who was the first to find complete specimens of ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and pterodactyls in Great Britain. They also keep a copy of the Rosetta stone in this gallery; very fun people-watching opportunity there, as it is kept in the open. It also made a very nice photograph, which I will be happy to show when I return home, because behind it are items from the King's Library, the king in question being George III (the Americans' fave, right?), who donated his immense library to the kingdom after his death. The only catch is that his library must be kept in a display where the public may see it, so they are kept in this gallery and in a glass tower at the British Library, which will be the topic of one of my next posts. I never did figure out where they kept the actual Rosetta stone, by the way--one of my friends saw it and took a picture of it, safely behind its glass. Looking at the map, I think I missed it by just a few paces, because I was in the gallery where it is labeled in the map. I'm perfectly content with my experience near the copy, because it was easier to photograph and examine, and it was so much fun seeing people's reactions to being able to touch it.

I also saw the general exhibit of the Egyptian mummies--they have a special exhibition going on right now with the Egyptian book of the dead, but it cost more and I had my fill of dead people with the permanent exhibits. It smelled kind of funny in there--I'm hoping it was just something different they used to clean the glass or something!

There was also a gallery of clocks, which was very funny to see after my adventure in the Clockmaker's Museum (look a few posts back if you missed it).

I also saw the Sutton Hoo helmet, found in a mysterious burial mound in the country. It was neat looking around the collections of early and Medieval Europe, with everything from armor to coins and elaborately decorated pieces of a door. There were also some drawings done in the first few centuries of Jesus growing up, rather unbiblical (with the exception of one featuring his first recorded miracle) but entertaining to examine.

I had to wonder just how the British Musem managed to acquire all of these things, most especially as I was wandering through a series of rooms that had Assyrian carved stone wall murals including such events as a lion hunt (a royal pasttime) and the laying seige of a Hebrew town.

Let's see, other things that I enjoyed viewing in the British Museum: there was an amazing new exhibition of Chinese printmaking from the 8th century to the present. I loved the exhibit, and would have even bought a book of the prints if they had a copy in the store, but alas it was absent. I'm including a link here to some of the prints, on the BM's website.

There's an Easter Island statue, which I took a picture of for a certain brother whose favorite character to quote in the "Night at the Museum" movie was the Easter Island head that loved gum.

There was also an impressive exhibit that featured several thousand years' worth of Chinese jade.

There's also an ambitious project in connection with the BBC for a documentary of "A History of the World in 100 Objects." We shall see if they can really fit "over two million years" of history into 15 minutes per object.

I don't think that someone could really sum up so much in a single blog post, so I'll finish here with a few more tidbits and links: a highlight of the museum's collections by place, people, culture, or material; over a dozen online tours of the museum's different collections; and a page where you can search the online collections database comprised of almost two million objects.

The Mystery of Cress (& other random musings)

I will be writing soon about my experience today at the British Museum and the British Museum's Archives (they will be my next official post), but I wanted to stick an informal little post in during the 30 minutes I have while my laundry's in the wash.
Anywho, while I was at the British Museum today, I began to get hungry. It was lunchtime, and I had been in there a couple of hours, but there was so much I still wanted to see! I didn't want to wander off in the neighborhood for lunch and miss the precious amount of time I had before my tour time--we're a large enough group and it's a small enough archive that we were split up into four groups. So I wandered over to the cafeteria in one corner of the great hall (which is amazing and huge, by the way), and joined the line. What's the first thing I see? An egg salad sandwich (made with mustard, not mayo) and CRESS. As someone who has read a lot of historical fiction and fiction that is actually from a historical period, I had read of cress I don't know how many times. Yet I still didn't actually know what it was! I decided that I had to try this very British sandwich. So, after I had grabbed something to drink, checked out, and managed to find somewhere to sit (no easy task), I opened up the sandwich container and took a bite. I liked it, I decided. Then I took a peek (the cress wasn't very visible from the side) to see what it looked like, and what did I find? Alfalfa sprouts! Something which I have had very many times and have enjoyed. So, evidently, cress is really the British word for alfalfa sprouts (done rather sparingly, I must say).
One of the more (admittedly trivial) things that had worried me when I was getting ready to come over here was music. Those who know my family know we're all musically inclined, to say the least, and I couldn't imagine living for a month without music. Those who are FaceBook friends with me might have seen a panicked status post asking how one charges an iPod in the UK --to which I think I have a solution, but am not going to try it if I don't have to. As it turns out, I have only used my iPod once so far, and not very much that one time, but I haven't had to live without music otherwise. I've simply had various random songs stuck in my head. Throughout the weekend there were several songs, including Feist's cover of the old jazz song "Tout Doucemont." Monday's theme was "[Is There] Life on Mars?" by David Bowie and Blondie's "Sunday Girl." Today I had a mental mix of Imogen Heap's "Little Bird," Feist's cover of "Sea Lion Woman," and a couple other great songs. I would post links to them on YouTube so that you may listen to them as well, but apparently this computer I'm on does not like YouTube. So, I will add the links in later, when I can.
Well, my time's up for now. I'll write more later, so keep on reading!

"Nevermore"

Tim Burton fans rejoice: have I got a musical for you!
Last night my class went to the Barbican Theatre to see the first performance of "Nevermore: The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe."

The musical comprises a complete biography of Edgar Allan Poe, ending with his death and beginning with his parents, pictured above from the Barbican website. Keep in mind that part of the title is that it is the "Imaginary Life" of Poe, however, because some parts of the biography are somewhat obviously stretched. I'm pretty sure that Poe did not try to kill his pet kitten with an axe at the age of 6, as he attempts to do so in the play. This is a dark comedy horror musical. The only setting is a set of metal screens (the frames of which are visible in the above picture), which slide back and forth. The costumes are comprised of a simple black and white outfit for each player (there are seven total, three women and four men), and then all but the actor who plays Poe (who is on stage the entire time as Poe) switch in and out of extra accessories and props which demonstrate which character they are currently playing. The ruff is the characteristic of Poe's father, and that certain bonnet and wire skirt belong to Poe's mother, whose death literally haunts him throughout the play. Poe's work has been weaved into the making of this biography in many different ways, some more recognizable than others, such as The Telltale Heart's horror of the heartbeat and single eye in the person of Poe's stern and unbending stepfather Jock Allan, from whom Poe gets his middle name. Since the people dearest to Poe drop like flies from TB or, in the case of his stepmother, from insanely believing they are a bird and dropping from a high window, and this play delights in the disturbing, horrifying and haunting, I would not advise for any child to see this play. However, if you don't mind the horror elements and love dark humor, costume ingenuity in a "steampunk" style, Edgar Allen Poe, or anything Tim Burton-esque, then this is the play for you. Nevermore will be making its New York City debut in October at the New Victory Theater.

images courtesy of the Barbican website

Clockmaker's Museum

One of the first things that popped into my head when walking into this museum was this place would be Captain Hook's worst nightmare. My second thought was: this is so cool!

Every part of the one-room Clockmakers' Museum located at Guildhall was occupied with clocks of all sorts. From the impressive Grandfather clocks to the tiniest personal watch and the most magnificently detailed and decorated watches. Almost all were still working, impressive considering their ages, and the room was filled with the gentle ticking of all of the clocks.

I never knew quite so much about the history of clocks, or even (I am shamed to admit) thought about it that much. The musem followed the beginning of the clockmaking trade in England during the time of Henry VIII all the way through today's clockmakers and time device trade, with plenty of examples laid out for your inspection. It included the race for the perfect method of finding longitude, solved by John Harrison's fourth and fifth marine timekeepers, proudly displaying the fifth one, which is the pride and joy of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers (the English guild who sponsor the museum). The first through fourth marine timekeepers of John Harrison are considered as belonging to the country, and are kept by a larger museum. The museum includes the ebb and flow of the English clock trade, from the devastations of plague and the Great London Fire to the more modern plague of industrialization. For each and every step of the way, there are at least half a dozen specimens on exhibit to show the art of the clockmaker. I can garauntee that you will never look at your wristwatch in the same way again after spending time in the Clockmaker's Museum.
Image from Microsoft ClipArt

Barbican Centre Library

I had never really heard about the Barbican Centre before, but once we got there I must say I was charmed by it. Tall towers of serene apartment buildings with literary names like Shakespeare Tower with a mini river flowing inbetween full of lilypads, ducks and waterfalls. It was so perfect-looking it reminded me of all the places in the movies that are supposedly utopian but then have some dark and horrible secret underneath the quiet zen (did I mention I can have a dark sense of humor?), but thankfully what we saw instead was a quietly bustling public library.

Image courtesy of Microsoft Clipart, not specifically of the Barbican Centre

Apparently, the Barbican Centre was an idea long in the making. It was thought of in the 1950s, planned in the 60s, built in the 70s, and opened in the 1980s (the lending library in 1982, and the music library in 1983). The Barbican Centre Library has three parts: a lending library, a music library, and a childrens library. The lending library's main demographic are the workforce of the city, not only those who both live and work in the city but also those who come in to work in the city and then go home at night. The music library's patrons include many students of nearby schools of the humanities, and the children's library interacts not only with the children who come in but also with the schools in the area and local nursuries. The lending library's challenge is bringing in the new electronic and digital materials, the music library works with the intricacies of a delicate cataloging and classification system (as well as the passerby who want to look up a song by humming), and the children's library is campaigning for literacy programs.

There were several things that caught my eye about the Barbican Centre Library. First was the "Art Space" in the front of the library, a mini-gallery of sorts that is rented out monthly and is currently sold out until the end of 2011. Another was the idea, foreign to us Americans, that checking out DVDs, blurays and CDs at most libraries in the UK is simliar to checking something out at the local Blockbuster or Family Video, in that there is a small fee involved. Another difference between the US and the UK's mode of operations is that the UK library will card you if you don't look old enough to check out a video of a certain rating. A young individual is not allowed to check out an item rated for someone older than they are without a parent or other responsible adult with them.

Another thing that caught my eye was the arrangement of the bookcases in one of the main areas. There were small bookcases, called "propellers," scattered around the pedestrian flow that were filled with materials relevant to a topic of general interest, like large print books in various genres or a gathering of materials about dancing for an upcoming dance festival. Arranged in an almost spiral or circular manner were medium-sized bookshelves that were Fiction arranged alphabetically by author. Further back and along the walls were topical collections, such as recently acquired materials, World History, Novelists, Travel, Horror, Nonfiction and Brit Travel. On the way to a computer study area was another set of medium-sized bookcases that comprised a "Skills for Life" area for all ages, with subtopics ranging from dyslexia, baby care, starting your own business, people of various ages dealing with depression, kids learning to be little helpers and swimming a length, etc.

While some increase in library use could "absolutely, definitely" be attributed to the global recession, an increase in reading interest has been occuring in the UK for about the past decade, since a Year of Reading in 1998 and then a follow-up year in 2008. At the same time, there has been an overall drop in the literacy of the UK.

The childrens library was swinging into gear for the beginning of the summer reading challenge, Space Hop. On top of the usual summer reading challenge program, the Barbican Centre's childrens library and a few other local libraries are hoping to draw in older childrem with a "Top Trumps" card game, sort of like a Pokemon game in that each card has a creature with a name and strengths that compete against one another. Unlike the average Pokemon card, the alien characters on the Top Trumps card game also list their birthplace (the one I looked at was born in East London), a favorite book, and a personal motto.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the Barbican Centre Library, which had a nice variety of materials in its lending library, an impressive selection in its music library, and a great set-up for kids in its childrens library.

Image is not specifically of the Barbican Centre Library, and is from ClipArt

St. Paul's Cathedral Library

We were a large enough group that we split up first to go to St. Paul's Cathedral (I was in the smaller group that opted for the tube instead of a bus) and then to tour the library. On the way we stopped for a group picture by the Temple Bar, one of the original gates of London where many impressive personages have passed through and others were spitted and displayed after their execution. When we entered the cathedral I was in the group that went up first, while the other group meandered around the cathedral. Led by the librarian, Joseph Wisdom, we headed up the south-west triforium (curved stone staircase) up to where the door leading to the library branched off. I was glad that we only had to go up that far, because the fact that the stairs were wide but short and the alternating pale stone with black strips of gripping tape were beginning to make me feel a bit dizzy. First on the tour was the lapidarium, the in-house part of the stone collection which featured fragments of the pre-Great Fire of London cathedral. You can access the full history of the cathedral in all of its reincarnations here, in a neat and tidy timeline. Then we passed further down the hall and stopped by the door of a study, over which was inscribed a quote from Ecclesiasted 12:12 in Latin: "Faciendi plures libros nullus est finis," or "Of making books there is no end." The next stop on the tour was the "BBC view," so nicknamed because the spot high on the balcony in the very back of the cathedral is where the BBC cameras set up most often for events.  Then it was on to one of the original library rooms which was never used as a library, and now houses the great model of what the architect Sir Christopher Wren had originally planned for the cathedral. Why was the original plan not carried out? Because it looked rather similar to St. Peter's in Rome, and that wasn't the most politically sound idea at the time.

Finally came the library itself, a medium-sized room filled from floor to tables to ceiling with old books. The room was filled with the pungent aroma of old books and their maladies. The librarian explained that part of the sent was a result of "off-gassing," a chemical reaction between the materials and their environment. Along the tour we learned such fascinating facts as that there is always a cathedral archeologist on staff. All the names of the librarians from the mid-17th century are known, and until the mid-20th century they were all in orders. There are four extant Wren libraries, the largest being located at Trinity college at Cambridge. The library collection is very focused in its acquisitions, only accepting works on Wren, the life and history of the Church of England, and alumni material. According to the librarian, they are frequently offered Bibles of loved ones passed away, which they cannot accept but are more than willing to find new loving homes for. There was a time for answering questions, and when someone asked what the specific system in use for organizing the many items scattered about the tables, the whimsical answer was "Is there a method to the madness? Yes. Is there madness? Yes!"

After the tour we were set loose to wander about the cathedral, which was absolutely magnificent. You can take a virtual tour of the cathedral, if you'd like.  No photos taken of the interior may be posted online, so I am very grateful to Wikipedia and to the St. Paul's site for these images.

Good Morning!

Since blogging, as it turns out, will be a major part of our scholastic experience abroad, my whole class is here in the computer lab typing up a storm!

One of the requirements of each post is a link and an image. I'm inserting a basic image for the time being, but when I get home I'll begin adding my own photos, so keep looking whenever you can.

Another option of blogging which I've never tried before is adding an RSS feed. Basically, what that means is that now you can look below this blog's archives and see the current headlines of both the British Library and the Bodleian Library, and when you click on the link it will take you to that article automatically. Amazing what technology can do these days, isn't it?

I'll probably be in here later today to write about our adventures in St. Paul's Cathedral Library, so I'll keep this post brief and sign off now.