Western Morning News (Saturday)
Charmian Evans A wonderful journey through history
WE can all remember museums as a child. Old wooden cases containing yellowed pages of books, butterflies pinned to a card, or the odd exhibit, poorly lit, of a boat or a pair of shoes..
In the 1980s the city museum in Plymouth was much like that. It had a musty smell and I remember looking at Plymothian Robert Falcon Scott’s boat salvaged from his trip to the Antarctic. It sat, forlornly covered with some brown leaves, no reflection of its brave owner who died exploring part of the world’s most brutal regions in the 1900’s.
Yesterday I went back to the Plymouth museum, now known as “The Box”. I wasn’t expecting too much, probably a makeover using the same artefacts as I’d seen years back.
How wrong I was. I hadn’t realised that £46 million had been spent on the refurbishment of this fantastic museum. It’s an absolute joy for every age. The entrance, which takes you into a bright and airy café, includes 14 enormous colourful figureheads, once gracing the prow of British ships, hanging majestically from the ceiling. Sailors of yore would have recognised them. No need for names of the ships for many of their crew who were often illiterate and knew their ships by the figureheads so beautifully crafted on the individual prows.
The museum flows enticingly, intuitively through well laid out rooms, starting with a huge, engaging 3D panorama presentation, setting the scene for a wonderful journey of Plymouth and its history. There are no brochures to guide. Instead there are lots of interactive screens, informing the user of the items on display, cleverly leading to other dimensions of the subject.
Plymouth had a huge strategic importance nationally and was at the forefront of British naval dominance. Devonport dockyard was the biggest in the universe in its heyday and built ships for the Royal Navy. A garrison town, Plymouth’s army also has had a huge role in the city for centuries. No wonder it was a target for the Luftwaffe in WWII. The city suffered the third largest number of casualties in the country and was almost razed to the ground. The cleverly restored film footages and photographs, along with personal recollections and artefacts show a raw picture of how the city and its people suffered.
“Journeys from Plymouth have changed the world” says information about the museum. And they have. The centrepiece of the gallery is a spinning globe of 100 journeys, scientific, imperial and others that began in the city. Explorers, too many to mention, include Sir Francis Drake, Sir Walter Raleigh, Captain James Cook, Charles Darwin, Scott of the Antarctic and Gertrude Benham enrich the displays with original artefacts.
Looking over the whole area is “The Armada Portrait”on loan from Woburn Abbey featuring Queen Elizabeth I in all her finery. It leaves no doubt that she intended Britain to rule the waves.
Archaeological displays go back to neanderthal times, and, to the delight of a group of visiting pupils from Ivybridge College, there is a very well-preserved skeleton that was unearthed in the area that dates back to those times. Replicas of hippo skeletons and lifesize woolly mammoths that would have roamed the region also fascinated the young visitors.
As a seaside area, fishing has its rightful place in the museum, depicting the success of the industry and the bravery of the men who, to this day, make a living from the sea.
I was delighted with the Cottonian Collections. It contains several thousand fine and rare prints, watercolours and other material relating to Sir Joshua Reynolds. There are many other important works, many never seen before, including a drawing by Rubens and another attributed to Leonardo Da Vinci.
For those who like bolder works, the paintings in the gallery will delight and include several by Sir Joshua Reynolds. A major collection of his work marking his birth 300 years ago begins on July 24th until September 5th and is the largest public collection of Reynolds art outside London. There are too many artists represented to wax lyrical here, but suffice to say that if you or your kids are inspired, there’s a great room to try your hand at drawing. Massive pulldown wall charts and crayons allow you to explore your inner artist.
This year over 500 pupils submitted some spectacularly talented art in a current display. The media isn’t forgotten either. A living history of all aspects of journalism is made more fun by the chance to become a newsreader on screen – very popular with adults and kids alike.
For years, many of the gems now on display were poorly stored. Now, state of the art facilities means they will be preserved for generations to come. Access to items like old maps can be explored easily on touch screens. Helpful and informed staff are keen to help and the museum has superb teaching rooms to encourage school and college visits. Truly, the Box has opened up the chance for people to understand and enjoy the rich heritage and history of the area. It’s not surprising that it has won dozens of impressive national awards. It’s a wonderful journey through time – and what’s more it’s free.
engines. Trying to get round villages will be fun. And will the bridges that were recently made stronger, have to be done again?
Mrs T. Newman Gloucester