Museums in Great Britain. British Museum, London - one of the largest historical museums in the world

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If we talk about European culture, what do you associate with the word “Italian”? For me this is Renaissance. “French” will be impressionism, “German” – classical music. And “English” is probably literature (Shakespeare alone is worth it!).

I’ll say right away that I’m not a big fan of literary house-museums. Sometimes it seems to me that it is much more interesting to reread a novel by a favorite writer or enjoy the poems of a poet who is close to you than to look at the cradle in which the future genius lay, or portraits of his distant relatives. It’s another matter when the museum’s organizers manage to recreate the atmosphere in which the writer lived and worked, and ordinary things take on a different meaning (unfortunately, this does not always happen). And sometimes you can get inspired by the literary spirit by simply walking along those streets or meadows where your favorite author and/or his heroes walked... And today I want to offer you a literary route through Great Britain, rich in writers and poets.

An hour and a half drive from London (you can take either train or bus), in the county of Kent lies the place with which the very birth of English literature is associated. The small town of Canterbury boasts a two-thousand-year history, a picturesque location on the River Stour and equally picturesque attractions. Among them are the ruins of Roman walls and a Norman castle, St. Augustine's Abbey, ancient churches and, of course, Canterbury Cathedral.

Canterbury: Cathedral and Castle Ruins

This cathedral, which housed the relics of St. Thomas Becket (Thomas of Canterbury), who was villainously murdered right at the altar, attracted pilgrims from all over England. It was here - to venerate the holy relics - that the heroes of the famous "Canterbury Tales" by Geoffrey Chaucer - the first work of truly English literature - headed. A collection of poetic and prose short stories - funny, lively and sometimes obscene stories told by pilgrims of different classes - is often called the English "Decameron". I have always been amazed at how easy this book, written at the end of the 14th century, is to read...

And even if the author was born and lived in London, and was buried in Westminster Abbey, even if Chaucer did not have time to finish his work, and his heroes only got to the shrines of Canterbury, having only seen the cathedral from afar... All the same, on the ancient streets of Canterbury you can clearly feel how tangibly close our literary past is distant. By the way, the city has the Canterbury Tales Museum, whose colorful exhibition recreates the atmosphere of Chaucer’s times.

Now fast forward 200 years and we move from south Kent to central Warwickshire. Stratford-upon-Avon is the most famous place of literary pilgrimage in all of Great Britain. There are always a lot of tourists here, especially during Shakespeare festivals, when the city's theaters are crowded, and there is literally nowhere for an apple to fall on the streets where the performance spills out. Yes, it was here that the great William Shakespeare was born, and here he died (it is generally accepted that both events occurred on April 23, in 1564 and 1616, respectively). And the playwright was buried in the local Church of the Holy Trinity, which has survived to this day.

Stratford-upon-Avon. Holy Trinity Church

The house where Shakespeare was born, the cottage where his future wife lived, and many other places directly or indirectly connected with the life of the great poet and playwright have been preserved. Almost all of Stratford is a living monument to Shakespeare.

Adherents of historical accuracy argue until they are hoarse whether this or that stone belonged to Shakespeare's times (just as the debate is still raging whether Shakespeare is the author of famous plays and sonnets...) But is this really important? The main thing is that the spirit of that time has been preserved in Stratford, and a simple walk through the narrow streets and beautiful parks of a very English town will bring you closer to understanding the great Shakespeare... And if you are tired of other tourists, then on the banks of the Avon you can still find a secluded place to sit and remember favorite sonnet. And the roses are blooming, and the swans are swimming in the quiet river backwaters just like centuries ago...

The Shakespearean spirit has also been preserved in London - in the Globe Theater, which stands on the south bank of the Thames. Yes, this is a modern reconstruction of a theater from Elizabethan times, but the building was recreated according to authentic plans and based on excavations of ancient foundations. But the main thing is not even the accuracy of reproduction - the traditions of Shakespearean theater are carefully preserved here. Even if you didn’t manage to get to the Globe performance, you can just go on a tour. I am sure that the fascinating story about the life of the theater during the time of Shakespeare will not leave anyone indifferent.

In general, many writers' destinies are connected with London. Here those whose names are forever inscribed in the glorious book of English literature were born, lived and worked. Many found their last refuge here - the Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey. In London, not only writers are honored, but also literary characters - just remember the Peter Pan monument in Kensington Gardens or the famous Sherlock Holmes Museum on Baker Street. But if I had to choose the most “London” writer, I would say: “Charles Dickens”. I became acquainted with Dickens's London almost by accident, wandering into the writer's museum in Bloomsbury. The museum is located in the house where Dickens lived for only two years, from 1837 to 1839, but where he wrote “Oliver Twist” and “Nicholas Nickleby.” I can’t say that the museum shocked me, although its exhibition is quite interesting for lovers of Dickens’s work. I was amazed by the walking tour that I was invited to at the museum. It was called "Dickens' London".

Maybe our group was lucky with the guide, or maybe I was in a corresponding “Dickensian” mood, but the history of the city, intertwined with the plots of our favorite books, came to life before our eyes... At first it was necessary to strain the imagination, mentally replacing electric street lighting with gas lamps, and modern cars - cabs and cabs, and then I really felt like I was in a city of the 19th century. I was able to see Dickens’s London - not ceremonial and brilliant, but gloomy and poor, find out where the “Antiquities Shop” was located, where the heroes of “Dombey and Son” and “Little Dorrit” lived, and which of the City pubs the writer himself liked to go to.

After a walk through noisy London, which (I don’t argue!) has become much more beautiful and cleaner than it was in the time of Dickens, you want peace and quiet. The most suitable place for a holiday is Bath, on the River Avon in Somerset - a charming resort town founded by the Romans. The name of the city itself speaks of healing mineral waters, and the perfectly preserved Roman baths are one of the attractions of Bath. In addition, the city is famous for its beautiful 18th-century architecture, the picturesque Pulteney Bridge and the medieval abbey.

As for the history of English literature, you can find a lot of interesting things on this topic in Bath. Thackeray, Defoe, Fielding and many others rested and worked here, but the main literary celebrity of the city is Jane Austen. The amazing writer lived here herself and “settled” or “brought” her heroines. In Bath, there is the Jane Austen Center, which hosts interesting events during which you can see firsthand the fashions and everyday life of the writer's time. Highly recommend!

Literary attractions can be found even in the remote English provinces. Among the hills and moors of Yorkshire lies the so-called Bronte Country, named after three sister writers - Charlotte, Emily and Anne.

Portrait of the Brontë sisters painted by their brother

Sisters Museum

In the village of Haworth there is the Brontë Museum - perhaps sparse, but with an amazing sense of the era - each exhibit is either associated with the sisters or is very suitable for the spirit of their solitary life and unique creativity. Walking around the picturesque surroundings, you can find a lot of interesting things - the prototype of the estate described in "Jane Eyre", the farm from "Wuthering Heights", the parents' house and the parish church, which was visited by generations of the Brontë family. And finally, you can simply admire the surroundings, gloomy, but beautiful in their own way (and very suitable for those who want to understand the work of the sisters).

Bronte Country

Literary Scotland deserves its own trip. This country, being part of Great Britain, has retained its independence, if not in politics, then in culture. The proud spirit of the Scottish Highlanders can still be felt as you walk through ancient Edinburgh and its small villages, admiring the steep cliffs jutting into the sea and the cool lochs among the mountains. And the work of Scottish patriots and romantics will immediately become closer and clearer to you.

A trip to the village of Alloway will introduce you to the life of the famous poet Robert Burns (his birthday is celebrated throughout Scotland on January 25th). Here you can see the poet’s museum, the cottage where he was actually born, and the picturesque surroundings. By the way, it was a pleasant surprise for me that the museum staff knew that Marshak translated Burns into Russian!

The Abbotsford estate, located on the Tweed River in the Scottish Borders, will open you up to the world of Sir Walter Scott - the famous author of Quentin Durward, Ivanhoe, The Beauty of Perth and other novels. The romantic appearance of the castle in the Old Scottish style surprisingly resonates with the writer’s work and attracts many of his fans.

The hometown of Robert Louis Stevenson (hardly anyone did not read “Treasure Island” as a child!) is Edinburgh, which played a huge role in the work of the famous writer. It seems to me that the romantic appearance of the ancient Scottish capital left its mark on Stevenson's gloomy romanticism. By the way, literary historians claim that it was in Edinburgh that a mysterious story took place, which formed the basis of the fantastic story “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”

You can get quite close to the history of Scottish literature without even leaving the city. To do this, just visit the Literary Museum, whose main characters are the already mentioned Robert Burns, Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson (but you can also find out about other Scottish celebrities here). The main thing is that the small Edinburgh museum captivates with the pride with which the Scots treat their writers and poets...

Modern young readers can also enjoy Edinburgh - this is where the Harry Potter novels were written. Fans of the writer's work have turned the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first Potter book into a local landmark.

When I was writing this article and trying to formulate my chaotic impressions of traveling around literary Great Britain, one thought did not leave me. Yes, in the modern world they read much less, and the classics are sometimes known only by hearsay, but all is not lost as long as people want to visit Shakespeare’s grave or the Edinburgh Literary Museum. It seemed to me that in some ways the English and, especially, the Scots are similar to us - those who go to Yasnaya Polyana or Pushkin Mountains... And you know, traveling through Dickens' London vaguely reminded me of Dostoevsky's famous excursions around St. Petersburg...

Svetlana Vetka , especially for Etoya.ru

History of the museum's creation

The museum was founded at the behest of the physician and naturalist Sir Hans Sloane(1660–1753). During his life, he collected an extensive collection (more than 71 thousand items) and, not wanting it to be divided after his death, bequeathed it to King George II.

June 7, 1753 George II signed an Act of Parliament creating the British Museum. The Cotton Library and the Harley Library were added to the Sloan collection by the Act of Foundation. In 1757, the Royal Library was added to them and, in addition, the right to receive a copy of any book published in Britain. These four early museum collections contained true treasures of British literature, including the only surviving copy of the medieval epic Beowulf.

The British Museum was the harbinger of a new type of museum for a number of reasons: it was not owned by either the crown or the church, it was free to enter, and it attempted to embrace the diversity of human culture in its collections.

Montagu House

Initially the museum was located in Montagu House, a 17th-century mansion bought for a museum. Interestingly, the museum's board of trustees rejected the option of housing the collections in Buckingham House, today called Buckingham Palace, due to the high cost and inconvenient location.

The museum opened to the public on January 15, 1759. From the very first years of the museum’s existence, its collections were constantly replenished through gifts, donations and the purchase of private collections. Thus, in the 1760s-1770s, the museum’s wealth was supplemented by a collection of treatises from the Civil War (1640s), plays from the 16th–17th centuries, and a collection of Greek vases. Since 1778, the museum has exhibited a variety of objects collected by Captain Cook on his voyages around the world. In 1784, W. Hamilton, the British ambassador to Naples, sold his collection of Greek and Roman antiquities to the museum. At the beginning of the 19th century, the museum actively expanded its collections of ancient Egyptian and ancient art. Thus, in 1802, the famous Rosetta Stone was presented to the public, thanks to which it was possible to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics, and in 1818, with the purchase of a bust of Pharaoh Ramses II, the foundation was laid for the collection of monumental sculpture of Ancient Egypt. In 1816, the museum bought from Thomas Bruce (British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in 1799-1803) a large collection of antique marble sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens. In 1825, collections of Assyrian and Babylonian art also appeared in the museum.

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The British Museum's holdings grew so rapidly that by the end of the 18th century Montague House became too cramped to store them, so in 1823 work began on constructing a more spacious building on the site of the old one. It was assumed that the new building would also house an art gallery, but after the opening in 1824 in London this was no longer necessary, and the empty premises were given over to natural history collections.

Since 1840, the museum has been organizing or financing archaeological expeditions in different parts of the world: on the island of Xanthos, in Lycia, Halicarnassus, and on the ruins of the ancient cities of Nimrod and Nineveh. Finds made by expeditions replenish the museum's funds, sometimes founding entire areas of scientific research. Thus, the discovery of a huge cuneiform library of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal made the British Museum one of the world centers of Assyrology.

From the mid-19th century, the museum began to expand with art objects from medieval Britain and Europe and with ethnographic materials from around the world. The museum's funds are replenished very quickly, and in 1887, due to the constant lack of premises, the natural history collections were moved to the Natural History Museum. But this did not solve the problem, so in 1895 the museum’s board of trustees bought 69 buildings around it in order to expand the exhibitions. Work began in 1906.

In 1918, due to the threat of bombing, some of the items from the museum were evacuated to several safe places. When these items were returned to the museum, it turned out that some of them had become damaged. For their restoration, a temporary restoration laboratory was created, which has been operating on a permanent basis since 1931. In 1923, the number of museum visitors reached one million for the first time.

In 1939, due to the threat of war, the most valuable collections of the museum were evacuated again, and, as it turned out, very timely, since in 1940, during one of the Luftwaffe raids, one of the museum’s galleries (Duvin Gallery) was seriously damaged.

In 1953, the museum celebrated its bicentenary. In subsequent years, its popularity among visitors did not decrease: in 1972, for example, the exhibition “Treasures of Tutankhamun” was visited by about 1.7 million people. In the same 1972, by a decision of parliament, it was decided to create a separate structure based on the book collections of the museum - the British Library. However, books began to be removed from the museum only in 1997. Having freed up some space, it became possible to convert the square courtyard in the center of the library into an indoor gallery, the largest in Europe - opened in 2000.

Today the museum, although it has lost its library and natural science collections, is still one of the largest museums in the world - its total area is 92 thousand m², and its collections contain more than 13 million items. The museum also has the world's largest online database of its exhibits, which contains more than 2 million records, 650 thousand of them with illustrations. About 4 thousand exhibits from this database are accompanied by detailed descriptions. The museum also provides free access to several research catalogs and online journals.

Exhibitions at the British Museum

Objects from the British Museum's collections are displayed in 100 galleries. In most of them, exhibits are selected on a territorial and chronological basis, but there are also thematic exhibitions, as well as a collection donated to the museum by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, the exhibits of which are exhibited in a separate gallery according to the will of the donor. The museum also regularly hosts guest exhibitions, which require a fee to view, unlike the museum's permanent exhibitions. All museum funds are organized into several departments.

- group tour (no more than 15 people) for a first acquaintance with the city and main attractions - 2 hours, 15 pounds

- see the historical core of London and learn about the main stages of its development - 3 hours, 30 pounds

- find out where and how the culture of tea and coffee drinking was born, and plunge into the atmosphere of those glorious times - 3 hours, 30 pounds

The museum houses the largest and most comprehensive collection of Egyptian antiquities after that of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Covering the time period from the 10th millennium BC. e. until the 12th century AD e. and all aspects of the life of Egyptian civilization, the British Museum's collection is the world's most important center for Egyptology.

The Egyptian department of the museum began at its founding - Sloan’s collection included 160 objects from Egypt. After Napoleon's defeat in Egypt (1801), valuables collected by the French during their Egyptian campaign (including the famous Rosetta Stone) were captured by the British army and soon joined the museum's holdings. Until the end of the 19th century, the department’s collection was replenished mainly through purchases, but after the start of the work of the Egyptian Research Fund, objects discovered during excavations began to flow into the department’s funds. In 1924 they already consisted of 57 thousand exhibits. Throughout almost the entire 20th century, until legislation was passed in Egypt prohibiting the export of archaeological finds, the collection expanded. Today it contains about 110 thousand items.

Egypt's seven permanent galleries, including the largest gallery No. 4, can only accommodate 4% of the collection's objects for display. The second floor galleries display a collection of 140 mummies and coffins, the largest in the world after Cairo. This is one of the museum's most popular exhibitions. The most valuable exhibits of the collection include:

Amarna Archives (or Amarna Correspondence) - 95 of 382 clay tablets containing diplomatic correspondence recorded in cuneiform between the pharaohs and their representatives in Palestine and Syria (circa 1350 BC). The most valuable source on the history of the Middle East.

Rosetta Stone (196 BC) - a stele with the text of the decree of King Ptolemy V. The enormous historical value of the stone lies in the fact that the text of the decree is carved in three versions: ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, demotic writing (Egyptian cursive) and in ancient Greek . This provided the key to deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.

“Palette with a battle” (other names - “Palette with vultures”, “Palette with giraffes”, “Palette with lions”) - stone plates (late 4th millennium BC) containing the oldest known images of military actions, and also pictograms, considered the predecessors of hieroglyphs.

Also of interest:

• bust of Pharaoh Ramses II (circa 1250 BC);
• royal list from the Temple of Ramses II (circa 1250 BC);
• granite statue of Senusret III (circa 1850 BC);
• Mummy of Cleopatra from Thebes (100 AD);
• obelisk of Pharaoh Nectanebo II (360-343 BC);
• Guyer-Anderson's cat (VII-IV centuries BC) - a bronze sculpture of the goddess Bastet in the form of a cat. The exhibit is named after the donor.
• sculptural images of Pharaoh Amenhotep III - a huge limestone bust, a statue and a separate head made of red granite (c. 1350 BC);

The British Museum houses one of the world's largest collections of Greek and Roman antiquities (more than 100 thousand items), covering the period from the beginning of the Bronze Age in Greece (about 3200 BC) to the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine I (early 4th century AD). e.).

The collection of ancient Greek artifacts also covers Cycladic, Minoan and Mycenaean cultures. The most valuable exhibits are sculptures from the Parthenon Temple in Athens and details of two wonders of the world - the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Temple of Artemis of Ephesus. The department is home to one of the most important collections of Italic and Etruscan art. Other most valuable exhibits of the department include:

• objects from the Athenian Acropolis (sculptures and friezes from the Parthenon temple, one of the surviving caryatids (female figures) and a column from the Erechtheion temple, friezes from the temple of Nike Apteros);
• sculptures from the temple of Apollo Epicurean in Bassae - 23 details of the frieze of the temple;
• details of the Mausoleum in Halicarnassus (two huge figures depicting, presumably, the king of Mausoleum and his wife Artemisia;
• part of the sculpture of a horse from a chariot crowning the Mausoleum;
• frieze depicting scenes of Amazonomachy - the war of the Greeks and Amazons);
• brooch from Braganza - gold fibula decoration (III century BC);
• terracotta sarcophagus of the Etruscan aristocrat Seiancia Hanunia Tlesnasa (2nd century BC);
• gladius from Mainz - Roman sword and scabbard (early 1st century AD)

The collection of this department, numbering 330 thousand exhibits, is without doubt the largest collection of Mesopotamian antiquities outside Iraq. Almost all civilizations and cultures of the ancient Near East are represented in the department’s funds - Mesopotamia, Persia, Arabia, Anatolia, the Caucasus, Syria, Palestine, Phenicia and its Mediterranean colonies.

The department's funds began to form in 1772, but they were replenished at a particularly rapid pace after the start of full-fledged archaeological expeditions in the territory of Mesopotamia (Iraq) in the middle of the 19th century. The museum's collection was extremely enriched by the discovery of the ruins of palaces and archives of the Assyrian kings in Nimrod and Nineveh, and excavations in Karchemish (Turkey), Babylon and Ur (Iraq). The cultures of the countries surrounding Mesopotamia are also widely represented - the Achaemenid Empire (in particular, the famous Amu Darya treasure), the Palmyra kingdom and Urartu. It also houses one of the largest collections of Islamic art (about 40 thousand objects) - ceramics, fine art, tiles, glass, seals, etc. Of the entire wealth of the department’s funds, only a small part is exhibited - 4,500 objects, occupying 13 galleries.

The most valuable exhibits of the department:

• Bas-reliefs from the palace of the Assyrian king Sargon II in Khorasabad;
• Gate from Balavat - bronze details of the entrance gate of the Assyrian fortress with images of the life of kings;
• Cylinder of Cyrus from Babylon;
• Collection of bronzes from Urartu;
• The Amudarya treasure (or Oka treasure) is a treasure of 180 gold and silver items from the Achaemenid period (VI-IV centuries BC), found on the territory of present-day Tajikistan.

Items from Nimrod:

• alabaster bas-reliefs from the palaces of the Assyrian kings Ashurnazirpal II, Tiglath-pileser III, Esarhaddon, Adad-nirari III;
• two sculptures of lions with human heads - “lamassu” (883-859 BC);
• huge lion statue (883-859 BC)
• black obelisk of Shalmaneser III (858-824 BC);
• statue of Ashurnasirpal II;
• statue of Idrimi (1600 BC)

Items from Nineveh:

• alabaster reliefs from the palaces of the Assyrian kings Ashurbanipal and Sennacherib with scenes of hunting and palace life, in particular the “Dying Lion” relief, considered a masterpiece of Assyrian art;
• royal library of Ashurbanipal (22 thousand clay tablets with cuneiform texts);
• tablet containing the text of the flood myth, considered part of the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Finds from the Sumerian city of Ur:

• "Standard of War and Peace" (c. 2500 BC) - two wooden panels of unclear purpose with scenes of war and peace inlaid with mother-of-pearl;
• “Ram in the Bushes” (c. 2600-2400 BC) - a figurine of a ram standing on its hind legs and leaning on the trunk of a bush. The figure is made of wood and decorated with gold, silver and lapis lazuli;
• "Royal Game" (c. 2600-2400 BC) - a set for a board game, one of the oldest in the world;
• The Queen's Harp (c. 2500 BC) is one of the oldest stringed musical instruments. It is shaped like a bull, made of sandstone, the bull's head is golden.

Department of Ancient History and Europe

The collection of this department includes items related to both the most ancient periods of human history (from 2 million years ago) and the history of Europe. The museum's holdings dating back to the early European Middle Ages are the largest in the world. The most interesting exhibits:

Prehistoric:

• “Lovers from Ain Sakhri” - stone figurine of the 10th millennium BC. e., found near Bethlehem and is the oldest image of people having sex;
• gold cup from Ringlemere (England, XVIII-XVI centuries BC);
• gold necklace from Sintra (Portugal, X-VIII centuries BC);
• decanters from Basse-Yut (France, 5th century BC);
• Cordoba treasure of silver objects (Spain, ca. 100 BC);
• necklaces from Ourense (Spain, c. 300-150 BC)

Roman period in Britain:

• tablets from Vindolanda (wooden tablets with handwritten texts of the 1st-2nd centuries AD);
• Thetford Treasure (a treasure of many silver and gold items from the 4th century AD);
• Lycurgus cup (IV century AD) - a Roman glass cup, the peculiarity of which is that its glass changes color from green to red depending on the location of the light source.

Early Middle Ages:

• treasure from Sutton Hoo (Angland) - objects (ceremonial helmets, gold jewelry, weapons) discovered in two burials of the 6th–7th centuries;
• Franks's casket is an 8th-century casket made of whale bone, richly decorated with carvings.

Middle Ages:

• chess pieces from the Isle of Lewis (Scotland) - 78 figures made of walrus tusk (12th century);
• the royal gold cup, or Saint Agnes Cup, is a gold cup decorated with enamel and pearls, made for the French royal family in the 14th century;
• shrine for the holy crown of thorns (c. 1390s) - made of gold and richly decorated with precious stones and pearls for storing one of the most important Christian relics. Belonged to the French royal house;
• Borradale triptych and Werner triptych - Byzantine ivory triptychs (10th century);
• John Grandison triptych - ivory triptych (England, circa 1330);
• the staff of the Bishop of Kells (IX-XI centuries) - a staff with a silver knob, presumably belonging to the Bishop of Kells (Ireland).

Asia Department

The exhibits in this department represent the material culture of the entire Asian continent (with the exception of the Middle East) from the Neolithic to the present day. The most popular exhibits:

• the most complete collection of sculptures from India, including Buddhist limestone bas-reliefs from Amaraviti;
• an outstanding collection of Chinese antiquities - drawings, porcelain, bronze, lacquerware and jade;
• a collection of Buddhist paintings from Dunhuang (China) and the “Scroll of Instruction” by the artist Gu Kaizhi (344-406);
• the most extensive collection of Japanese art in the West;
• the famous treasure of Buddhist gold and silver sculptures from Sambasa (Indonesia);
• statue of Tara from Sri Lanka (8th century);
• Buddhist vases from Kullu and Wardak;
• huge statue of Buddha Amitabha from Gantsui (China).

Department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas

The British Museum has one of the most extensive collections of ethnographic material from Africa, Oceania and the Americas, representing the life of the indigenous peoples of these parts of the world. More than 350 thousand items in this collection tell about 2 million years of human history.

Highlights of the collection include bronzes from Benin, a fine bronze head of Queen Idia, a magnificent brass head of a Yorube ruler from Ife (Nigeria), Ashanti gold pieces (Ghana) and a collection of sculpture, textiles and weapons from Central Africa.

The American collection primarily consists of objects from the 19th and 20th centuries, but also includes older Incan, Aztec, Mayan, and Taín cultures. In the museum you can see, for example, a series of amazing Mayan door lintels from Yaxchilan (Mexico), a collection of turquoise Aztec mosaics from Mexico and a group of Zemi figures from Vere (Jamaica).

Department of coins and medals

The British Museum has one of the world's largest collections of coins and medals, numbering around 1 million items. The collection exhibits cover the entire history of coinage - from the 7th century BC. e. to this day. Museum visitors can see only 9 thousand exhibits (most of them are located in gallery No. 68, the rest are in different galleries of the museum).

Department of Prints and Drawings

The Department of Prints and Drawings of the British Museum is one of the largest collections of its kind, along with the collections of the Albertina (Vienna), the Louvre (Paris) and the Hermitage (St. Petersburg). Today the department stores about 50 thousand drawings and more than 2 million engravings and woodcuts by outstanding European artists from the 14th century to the present day. In particular, in the museum you can see collections of drawings by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, one of the largest collections of drawings, engravings and lithographs by Durer (138 drawings, 99 engravings, 6 etchings, 346 woodcuts), Rubens, Rembrandt, Claude, Watteau and many others. The department also houses more than 30 thousand drawings and watercolors by prominent British artists. More than 500 thousand exhibits of the department are listed in the online database, many with high-quality illustrations.

Controversial issues of the museum's activities

In recent years, the museum has faced claims from a number of countries and organizations regarding its ownership of some art objects exported to England at various times. The museum rejects these claims on the grounds that "demands for restitution would destroy not only the British Museum, but any major museum in the world." In addition, the British Museums Act 1963 prohibits the removal of any objects from museum collections. Items whose ownership causes the most heated debate include:

• sculptures from the Parthenon Temple, semi-legally exported by the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Count Elgin at the beginning of the 19th century. Greece demands the return of these cultural objects. They are supported by UNESCO;
• bronze sculptures from the Kingdom of Benin. Nigeria is seeking their return;
• tabots - ritual tablets with the Ten Commandments taken from Ethiopia by the British army;
• Amudarya treasure (Oka treasure). Tajikistan is seeking his return;
• Egypt demands the return of the Rosetta Stone;
• China has laid claim to more than 24,000 scrolls, manuscripts, paintings and relics (including the Diamond Sutra) from the Mogao Caves.

Stories and Treasures of the Tower - retrace the long journey of the castle-prison, get to know its symbols and admire the royal regalia - 2 hours, £45

- where, how and what kind of tea do true connoisseurs drink in modern London - 3 hours, 30 pounds

- discover the most colorful, musical and iconic area of ​​the city - 2 hours, 30 pounds

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London is a city home to many museums, exhibitions, galleries and other cultural sites that attract tourists from all over the world. The British Museum is one of those places that is visited by millions of people. It is second in the world in terms of the number of exhibits after. 94 galleries with a total length of 4 kilometers - this is what awaits everyone who wants to visit this cultural landmark of London.

History and architecture of the British Museum

The history of the British Museum began with a private collection of exhibits. The English doctor Hans Sloane, who was also a famous collector of antiquities, traveler and naturalist, made a will during his lifetime. It said that for a completely symbolic fee he was donating his exhibits to King George II. At that time, the collection consisted of more than 70,000 items.

The British museum was founded on June 7, 1753 by a special act of Parliament. Subsequently, it was the Parliament that acquired exhibits from collectors in order to replenish the museum’s fund. For the opening, the museum was replenished with the Harley Library and the Cotton Library. And in 1757, the Royal Library joined the collections. Among the exhibits were genuine literary treasures, including the only surviving copy of Beowulf.

In 1759, the British Museum was officially opened to visitors at Montagu House. But not everyone could get here, only a select few. The British Museum became available for public visits almost 100 years later, but more on that later.

At the end of the 18th - beginning of the 19th century, the museum bought Hamilton's collection of antique vases, Greville's minerals, and Lord Elgin's Parthenon marbles, which to this day are the real pearl of the exhibition. The Anglo-Egyptian War played an important role in the development of the British Museum, as a result of which Egypt became one of the protectorates of Great Britain. At this time, many antiquities, works of art and treasures were taken from Egypt, and this was done illegally.

The collection grew and there was a need to divide the museum by subject. But every year the space became less and less. In 1823, work began on the construction of a separate building for exhibits. The architect of the British Museum was Robert Smerk, who conceived the project in a neo-Greek style. A special feature of the building is 44 Ionic columns on the southern façade.

Construction lasted just over 30 years and in 1847 the doors of the British Museum opened to the general public. The museum's gable was built in the 1850s and was designed by Sir Richard Westmacott. Originally, the pediment would have had numbers showing "Progress of Civilization" - an idea that now seems old-fashioned. But the architect decided to depict progress differently. If you look closely, on the far left you will see an uneducated man emerging from behind a rock. He studies things such as sculpture, music and poetry, becoming "civilized". All objects are personified and represented by human figures. From left to right: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, Science, Geometry, Drama, Music and Poetry.

But work on the project did not stop there - in 1857 the Great Courtyard was built, where the Round Reading Room was located in the center.

By the beginning of the 20th century, the museum had many exhibits brought from the Middle East, which was the result of archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia. Later, some collections were separated into the Natural History Museum, and in 1972 the British Library also broke away, leaving reminders of itself in the form of the aforementioned reading room. In 2000, architect Norman Foster redesigned a number of rooms and also built a glass roof over the Courtyard.

Today the British Museum's collection numbers 13 million objects. Of course, one visit is not enough to see them all. But the fact that this attraction cannot be ignored is clear.

Sections of the British Museum and their famous exhibits

The British museum is divided into 6 themes, which combine archaeological and cultural objects from different countries and periods:

Ancient Egypt and Nubia

Here you can see the largest collection of sarcophagi and mummies (including the mummy of Cleopatra), the obelisk of Pharaoh Nectanebo II, the mathematical papyrus of Ahmes, 382 and 95 tablets of the Amarna archive, a fragment of the Sphinx's beard and the famous Roszeta Stone (a stone slab on which three identical texts are carved, one in ancient Greek and two in ancient Egyptian, one written in demotic script and the other in hieroglyphs).

Africa, East and South Asia, Oceania, Mesoamerica

These halls contain Benin bronzes, the Diamond Sutra, the Book of Fortune-Telling, Kanishka stupas, a collection of Chinese porcelain (Percival David Foundation), and an ancient Chinese scroll, Instructions of the Senior Court Lady.

The Ancient East

Those who are interested in the culture and archeology of the East will be very interested in visiting this exhibition. Among the numerous exhibits here there is a cylinder of Cyrus, a prism of Sennacherib, jewelry of the priestess Shubad, paired figurines of “Rams in the Thicket” from 4,500 years ago, a collection of bas-reliefs, and the Balavat gate of Shalmaneser III.

Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome

There are interesting exhibits here, among which are fragments of the excavations of the Knossos Palace, fragments of the frieze of the Temple of Nike Apteros, the frieze of the Temple of Apollo in Bassae, the Warren Cup, the Portland Vase, and the Elgin marbles from the Acropolis.

UK and Europe

It contains the gold cup of Charles V, the cape from Mold, the Franks casket, the Isle of Lewis chess set, Fuller's brooches, Anglo-Saxon hoards and Lindow Man - the remains of a man who died during the Iron Age.

Graphics and engraving

The gallery features famous engravings such as Goya's "Disasters of War", graphic drawings by Raphael, Albrecht Durer, Michelangelo, William Blake, Leonardo da Vinci and Rembrandt.

Information for visitors: where it is located, opening hours and how much admission costs

British Museum address: Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG.

Nearest bus stop: Montague Street (Stop L).

Nearest metro stations: Tottenham Court Road, Russell Square, Holborn.

Entrance to the British Museum: free, except for guest exhibitions. The museum has donation boxes where tourists throw one or two pounds into the museum fund.

Schedule: the museum is open daily from 10:00 to 17:30, on Fridays from 10:00 to 20:30. Some galleries may be closed without prior notice.

It is better to find out more about the opening hours of the halls and temporary exhibitions on the official website.

On the grounds of the British Museum there is a gift shop and two cafes where you can grab a bite to eat after a long walk through the galleries.

A half-hour walk from the British Museum is located, which every guest of the city should also see. To have time to get to know the capital of Great Britain, you need to stay here for at least a week. Our catalog includes - most of them are within walking distance of the main attractions.

Walking through the places where William Shakespeare and Oscar Wilde visited, and seeing the landscapes that inspired the Brontë sisters and Jane Austen, is a good goal for every book lover. The ZagraNitsa portal has collected a dozen locations from different parts of the United Kingdom that all connoisseurs of good literature should visit

Whitby

The landscapes and architecture of the seaside town of Whitby in North Yorkshire inspired Irish novelist Bram Stoker to write one of the most famous Gothic works of all time, Dracula. Part of the novel's action takes place in Whitby, and the town still remembers its connection with the legendary literary character. Twice a year, the Whitby Gothic Weekend festival of gothic subculture is held here, and in October the Bram Stoker Film Festival is held in the city.

Photo: en.wikipedia.org 2

The Elephant House, Edinburgh

The modest size of The Elephant House cafe in Edinburgh is difficult to match its popularity. There are always a lot of visitors here, and tourists do not miss the opportunity to take pictures at the entrance to the establishment next to the sign “Birthplace of Harry Potter.” It was here, in a small establishment, that JK Rowling, sitting at a table with her little daughter in a stroller for days, wrote her first novel about a boy wizard.

Take a seat in the back room for beautiful views of Edinburgh Castle.

Photo: annadrops.wordpress.com

British Library

The number of storage items is second only to the Library of Congress in the United States - there are more than 150 million copies of books, magazines, newspapers and manuscripts. Here you can find publications in almost all languages ​​of the world and from different times: from the collection of King George III to modern works.

Photo: magnacarta800th.com 4

Baht

The English city of Bath is famous not only for its hot springs, but also as the place where the events of Jane Austen's novels took place. The writer lived here from 1801 to 1806 and was inspired by the city landscapes. Bath still honors her memory and hosts an annual Jane Austen festival. Guests of the event hold costumed meetings and literary readings from the Regency era.

Photo: bath360.co.uk 5

Broadstairs

The town in Kent was the inspiration for Charles Dickens. Here on the English Channel coast, at the Bleak House Hotel, the famous English writer stayed with his son and wrote the novel “David Copperfield”. There is now a museum in Broadstairs in honor of Dickens.

Photo: flickr.com by Stuart Handscombe 6

Stratford upon Avon

The birthplace of the famous English playwright William Shakespeare is the most beautiful city in the United Kingdom. Here, for all connoisseurs of English classical literature, the Royal Shakespeare Theater operates and museums named after the great writer are open. It’s worth coming here if only to see the house where the playwright was born and spent his last days.

Photo: tracyzhangphoto.wordpress.com 7

Howerth

The English village of Hohert is an iconic place for all fans of the Bronte sisters' work. At the beginning of the 19th century, their family owned an estate here, which today houses a museum dedicated to them. West Yorkshire's landscapes have inspired some of the world's most famous novels, including Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. Perhaps, looking at the ruined farm of Top Withens, you will recreate in your imagination the story of Heathcliff and Catherine, because it is believed that this particular area is the prototype of the Earnshaw family home and the main inspiration of Emily Brontë.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org 8

Ashdown

A forest in East Sussex is where the world's most famous bear, Winnie the Pooh, was born. Here, on the Cotchford farm near the forest, lived the English writer Alan Milne and his son Christopher Robin. Walking along the forest paths inspired Milne so much that he decided to write a series of stories about a bear who lives in the forest and his friendship with the boy Christopher Robin.

Photo: flickr.com by Mark Watts

Oxford University

This is not only one of the best in the world: its walls still remember the presence of Clive Staples Lewis, Oscar Wilde and Lewis Carroll, who studied or lectured here. Oxford also has an amazing library that is also worth a visit.

Photo: popsugar.com 10

Jamaica Inn, Cornwall

The English writer Daphne du Maurier was inspired by a trip to the hills of Bodmin Moor to create the novel about smugglers, The Jamaica Inn (which Alfred Hitchcock made into a film of the same name). While still a little girl, Maurier and her friend got lost in the forest while riding horses, and miraculously made it back to the hotel, which was called the Jamaica Inn. One of the rooms still houses a kind of museum with memorabilia of the writer.

Photo: flickr.com by Keith Smith

What places in the United Kingdom are associated with the work of famous writers? Share with us in the comments!

Nowhere except London is there such a huge number of attractions, museums, and exhibitions that constantly attract tourists. There are numerous tourist sites and exhibitions of almost any type. They are constantly open to visitors, the flow of which does not dry out over time.

The main historical and archaeological museum in the UK and one of the largest in the world is the British Museum in London.

It is constantly at the top of the ranking in terms of attendance among museums in the world. The British Museum is located in Bloomsbury, a historic district of London.

All visitors to the British Museum can view the historical and cultural treasures located here free of charge. 94 galleries are open to tourists, with a length of about 4 kilometers.

Naturally, it is impossible to get acquainted with so many exhibits in one or two days. Among the museum staff there are Russian-speaking guides who will help Russian tourists better understand historical facts, as well as cats.

6 cats are officially on the staff of the British Museum : They are decorated with yellow bows, behave with dignity in the halls and protect museum valuables from rodent infestations.

History of the museum

Like many other collections in England, the British Museum arose from a private collection. During his lifetime, the famous English collector of antiquities, doctor and naturalist Hans Sloan drew up a will, according to which, for a certain nominal fee, his entire collection of more than 70 thousand exhibits passed to King George II.

Thanks to this, the English national fund was significantly replenished. This happened in June 1753. At the same time, antiquarian James Cotton donated his library to the state, and Count Robert Harley donated a unique collection of ancient manuscripts. The creation of the historical museum was approved by a special act of the British Parliament.

In 1759 the museum was opened to visitors in Montague House. At first, only selected people could become visitors to the museum. The museum opened to everyone only in 1847, when the modern museum building was built.

The British Museum collection has been constantly expanded. At the end of the 18th century, the museum acquired Greville’s collection of minerals, W. Hamilton’s antique vases, Townley marbles, and bought masterpieces from the Parthenon from Lord Elgin.

Some exhibits in the museum ended up in an almost criminal way: to this day, Greece and Egypt demand the return of some valuable relics (for example, the Rosetta Stone - a slab with text in the ancient Egyptian language) taken illegally from these countries.

In the 19th century, the British Museum in London began to grow and develop rapidly. At this time, it became necessary to divide the museum into departments, some of which were moved to another location. A numismatic department has appeared, where medals and coins from different countries belonging to different eras (including ancient Greek, Persian, ancient Roman) are collected.

The geological, mineralogical, botanical and zoological departments were separated into a separate Natural History Museum, which was moved to South Kensington in 1845. From 1823 to 1847, the Montagu House mansion was demolished, and in its place stood a modern building in the classicist style, created by the architect R. Smirk.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the number of artifacts from the Middle East increased due to archaeological excavations carried out in Mesopotamia. Since 1926, the museum has published its own magazine quarterly, which covers events taking place in the museum.

At the end of the 20th century, when preparations were being made for the 250th anniversary of the founding of the museum, the exhibition halls were expanded. Under the leadership of Norman Foster, the space was redeveloped: new premises appeared, the galleries were updated, and an additional area was glazed.

Museum expositions

At first, the museum was conceived only as a collection of antiquities from Greece and Rome, but gradually exhibits of various eras from other places appeared, for which new departments were organized:

• The Greco-Roman collection in the British Museum is located in 12 rooms. It includes luxury items dating back to the times of the Roman emperors, Lycian sculptures, sculptures from the Temple of Apollo at Phigalia, remains of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus, etc.

• The Oriental Department of the museum displays collections of sculptures, paintings, ceramics and prints from South and Southeast Asia. There are Indian bronze statues of Buddha, monuments of hieroglyphic writing dating back to the 2nd millennium BC, ritual vessels of Ancient China and other ancient Oriental treasures.

• In the Department of the Middle Ages and Modern Times you can see works of decorative and applied art from the times of early Christianity to the 19th century. There are many religious objects, dishes and jewelry made of silver, knightly armor and medieval weapons, collections of ceramic and glass products of the 18th-19th centuries, church utensils and the world's largest collection of watches.

• The collection of drawings and engravings of the British Museum in terms of artistic value and size is on a par with the famous Louvre. This department contains paintings by Botticelli , Van Dyck, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Durer, Van Gogh, Raphael and many others.

• The number of medals and coins in the numismatics department exceeds 200 thousand copies. Here you can see coins from the 7th century BC to modern examples, as well as coins made of precious metals. The department also houses almost all the medals dedicated to important historical events of the country, including medals from the London 2012 Olympics.

• In the ethnography department you can get acquainted with objects of everyday life and culture of the peoples of Australia, Africa, Asia and Oceania, America, starting with the discovery of these lands by Columbus, Cook and other famous navigators.

• The British Museum is also the largest library in the UK, with more than 7 million volumes of various publications, about 200 thousand items of manuscripts in European languages, more than half a million geographical maps and almost a million copies of sheet music. About 20 thousand technical and scientific journals are collected here. The British Museum library has 6 reading rooms for 670 visitors.

The museum regularly hosts thematic excursions; on Sundays, the “Young Friend of the British Museum” children's club operates, whose members have access to additional interesting exhibitions. “Nights at the Museum”, held 4 times a year, are popular here, as throughout the world. Each night has a specific theme, such as "Egyptian Night" or "Japanese Night".

Tourist information

The museum is open daily, its opening hours: 10-00 – 17-30. From Thursday to Friday, some departments work longer, up to 20-30.

Now the museum's fund is replenished mainly through donations from patrons or collectors. Some exhibits were purchased with parliamentary money. Entrance to the British Museum is free, but it is considered good form to leave a small donation, for which special boxes are installed in the museum.

The British Museum is huge in area and in the number of exhibits on display, so you shouldn't try to get around it in one or two days. It is better to choose one or two exhibitions that are most interesting to you and devote your time entirely to them. Otherwise, what will remain from visiting the museum is not positive emotions and new knowledge, but fatigue and a sore head.