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When in London, visit the glorious British Museum |
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Sinatra sang about it: “A foggy day in London Town, had me low and had me down. I viewed the morning with alarm, the British Museum had lost its charm.” Sorry, Frank, but you were wrong. No weather of any kind, nor even heavy World War II bombing, could cause the British Museum to lose its charm.
Founded in 1753, the British Museum now contains over thirteen million objects of art, sculpture and everyday life, some as old as 3,500 years. In the same complex of buildings are 70 million objects at the Natural History Museum, and 150 million books and manuscripts at the British Library. Many of the buildings were badly damaged during World War II German air raids (the Blitz) in the early 1940s, but all of the exhibits survived after they had been safely moved to London’s Underground (subway system).
The millions of exhibits are constantly changing, with exciting new ones arriving all the time. On the day we visited several years ago, the latest entry was a hunter’s body found that year in the high Alps. Naturally mummified in the snow, he was 3,500 years old, and completely preserved with his clothing, bag of snacks and weapons.
A day at the British Museum is not nearly enough time to see enough of the wonderful exhibits, from King Tut’s funeral artifacts to Cleopatra’s ceremonial boat to King Arthur’s armor to the Duke of Wellington’s full dress uniform. If you’re visiting, spend as much time there as you like. Except for some special traveling exhibits, admission is free.
The British Museum is at Great Russell Street, London, England, WC1B 3DG, phone +44 (0)20 7323 8299, on line at www.britishmuseum.org |
DESTINATION SPOTLIGHT