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The museum is now divided into five zones displaying more than 8,000 artefacts in total The NaTioNal MuseuM of scoTlaNd
Restoring the Victorian ideal of showcasing the world under one roof was the inspiration behind the NMS’s £70m, 15-year redevelopment project, as Kathleen Whyman learns
dr GordoN riNToul Director of National Museums Scotland
What is the National Museum of scotland? It’s the flagship of National Museums Scotland’s six museums. Its aim is to con- nect Scotland to the world and the world to Scotland. Prior to this development the museum was housed in two adjacent build- ings known as The Royal Museum and the Museum of Scotland, which was confusing both the public and the media. In 2004 we launched a £70m (E82.5m,
US$109.2m) masterplan to redevelop the Victorian building and integrate the two museums as the National Museum of Scotland. We’re eight years into the 15-year plan. Phase one opened in July 2011 revealing a £47.4m (E56.3m, US$73.5m) transformation. The two buildings are
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now divided into five zones displaying 8,000 artefacts: the natural world; cultures around the world; art and design; science and technology; and Scotland.
What inspired the masterplan? The Museum of Scotland building opened in 1998. The older building next door, then called The Royal Museum, was looking ter- ribly tired. It opened in 1866 and had been amended and added to over the years but never given a comprehensive update. It had very old displays and its interpretation and facilities were out of date. Also, although they were part of the same complex, we still called the two museums different things – there was a different name over each entrance. We needed to give the complex a single iden- tity so that everyone was clear who we are and what we display. In many ways we’ve gone back to the roots and original founda- tion of the museum – that great Victorian
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ideal of educating the population at large and enabling them to find out about the whole world under one roof.
how has the museum changed? We’ve created an entirely new museum. Previously, the ground floor was primarily storage and visitors entered the building on the first floor. We’ve moved the storage off site and put an entrance at street level with toilets, shops, restaurants and cafés. There are 16 new galleries plus a three-
storey learning centre where we have events for schools and for families at week- ends plus adult lectures. We’ve restored the building to its Victorian splendour but brought the facilities right up to date.
how was the money raised? We got £16m (E19m, $24.8m) from the Scottish government, which was terrific and helped leverage other support. We had £18m (E21.5m, $27.9m) from the
AM 1 2012 ©cybertrek 2012
PHOTO: ROB MCDOUGALL
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