Let's not be mistaken if we say that perhaps the most popular attraction in the UK is the British Museum in London. This is one of the largest treasures in the world. Surprisingly, it was created spontaneously (however, like many other museums in the country). Three private collections became its basis.
The British Museum is located on an area of 6 hectares in buildings that have been erected for over a hundred years. They contain exhibits of all the cultures of the world known today. The British Museum in London is one of the few European institutions of this level, which is interesting not only for its unique, rare exhibits. The building itself is an invaluable monument of history and culture.
His very venerable age (250 years) is directly related to the history of the country in which the natural sciences flourished. Perhaps that is why not a philanthropist and not an artist, but a scientist-naturalist is the founder of the illustrious collection. We are talking about the royal physician Sir Hans Sloan (1660-1753). During his lifemanaged to collect a colossal collection of ethnographic, natural-scientific and artistic exhibits of great value.
British Museum exhibits
A distinctive feature of this museum is a huge variety of exhibits. Archaeological and ethnographic rarities coexist here with paintings, objects of natural science, ancient manuscripts, books and sculptures.
From the history of the museum
The British National Museum began its history in 1753. It was then that British naturalist Hans Sloan bequeathed his unique collection to the nation. The opening of the museum was approved by a special act of the British Parliament. By 1759, when the Museum officially began its work, the collection was replenished with exhibits from the royal library.
Sculptures
These are the undisputed gems of the British Museum's collection. These sculptures are called Parthenon marbles (or Elgin marbles). They got their name in honor of the count who took them out of Greece at one time. Today, the museum boasts the world's largest collection of Asian sculpture. The Department of Egyptian Antiquities has a collection of about 66,000 items, and the ancient Greek collection consists of a number of world-famous masterpieces: a statue of Demeter, a bust of Pericles and others.
The names of their creators remain unknown, despite the uniqueness and scale of the works. There is a version that the statues and frieze of the Parthenon are the work of a famous sculptor from Greece (Phidias), who ledconstruction of the Acropolis. More than once this country made attempts to return the Parthenon marbles. In turn, England is in no hurry to say goodbye to priceless treasures. Each side has its own opinion on this matter: the Greeks call the removal of priceless relics a theft, British museum workers believe that this measure saved the sculptures from destruction.
Probably both sides are right in their own way. Earl Elgin took the government's permission to take some exhibits out of the country in a very peculiar way. By the time they were taken over by the British Museum, the Parthenon had been in dilapidated ruins for more than a century.
Rosetta Stone
Without a doubt, this is one of the most famous exhibits owned by the British Museum. An artifact that was discovered at the end of the 18th century. He allowed Jean Champollion (a French Orientalist historian and linguist) to translate Egyptian hieroglyphs. Today, this relic welcomes visitors in the Egyptian hall of the museum.
Mummy Katabet
Three and a half thousand years - the age of the mummy of the priestess of Amun-Ra, whose name was Katabet. Her body is wrapped in cloth. The face is covered by a gilded mask, which depicts a portrait of a priestess. Interestingly, the sarcophagus was originally intended for a man. Another feature of this mummy is that the woman's brain, unlike all other organs, was not seized.
Hoa-Haka-Nana-Ia
The British Museum collection has another gem. This is a Polynesian sculpture brought from Easter Island. It is called Hoa-Haka-Nana-Ia. In Russian, this is the nametranslated as "a kidnapped (or hidden) friend." At first, the Moai idol was painted white and red, but over time, the paint faded, peeled off and exposed the bas alt tufa. This durable natural material was used in the manufacture of a monolithic sculpture.
Beard of the Great Sphinx
Thanks to the efforts of Giovanni Battista Cavigli, a native of Italy, the British Museum has in its collection an element of the Great Sphinx's beard. The famous adventurer Caviglia decided to dig up the main attraction of Giza. Henry S alt (British Ambassador) set the enterprising Italian the condition that he must transfer all the items found to the British Museum. The remaining fragments of the beard that Caviglia left in the sand are now kept in the Egyptian Museum of Cairo.
British Museum Library
It was based on a collection of medieval Anglo-Saxon and Latin manuscripts, created in 1753, collected by Sir Hans Sloane. The idea of creating a library was supported by George II. He donated the library of King Edward IV to the museum. Another 65 thousand copies appeared in the collection in 1823. It was a gift from King George III. In 1850, one of the most famous reading rooms in the world was opened in the museum building - Karl Marx, Lenin and other famous people worked in it.
Library in the 20th century
The most significant event in the history of the British Library took place in the 20th century. In July 1973, the four national book collections were merged. Later they were joined by the libraries of Scotland and Wales. In 1973the library system was established. It is effective to this day - readers can get any book that is in the UK.
In the same (XX) century, Buddhist manuscripts and ancient printed books from Dunhuang appeared in the collection of the British Library. In 1933, the British Museum bought in Russia for one hundred thousand pounds the Codex Sinaiticus, a priceless Christian relic, which the Soviet authorities considered unnecessary in an atheistic society.
Library Collection
Today it is the world's largest collection of books, manuscripts, manuscripts. The collection contains more than one hundred and fifty thousand items. Since 1983, the National Sound Archive has appeared in the Library. Here they store notes and sound recordings, manuscripts of musical works - from Handel to the Beatles.
Paintings
The British Museum has not the largest exposition of fine art. But if we talk about the quality component, then it is not inferior to the Louvre in Paris or the St. Petersburg Hermitage. In terms of the number of world-famous masterpieces, the British Museum has no equal. Among the most famous artists in the world, it is probably impossible to find one whose paintings are not in the London collection.
Gallery display
Of course, being on the shores of Foggy Albion, I want to get acquainted with the art of this place. This opportunity is fully provided by the British Museum. The paintings of the great painters are represented by landscapes and portraits of Lawrence and Gainsborough, satirical paintingsHogarth. They showcase the original British art school in all its diversity. The painting of England competes with the famous canvases of the artists of Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, which are widely represented in the London National Gallery.
Here you can see the "Madonna in the Rocks" (Leonardo da Vinci). This is a late version of the canvas stored in the Louvre. Museum visitors can enjoy six paintings by Botticelli. Among them is the true pearl of the master - "Venus and Mars". The exposition includes works by Piero della Francesca, Antonello da Messina, Veronese, Tintoretto, Titian.
If you are lucky enough to visit the British Museum, do not miss the collection of paintings by Carlo Crivelli, a Venetian who lived and worked in the 15th century. Today, the work of this magnificent master is not as famous as at the end of the 19th century, when a huge sum of 2184 pounds was paid for his "Rondino Madonna". To give you an idea of the value of this work, we note that the only painting in the gallery by the great painter Della Francesca was purchased at the same time for 241 pounds.
The most significant collection of the museum is represented by the Netherlands School. It consists of four paintings by Jan van Eyck. No museum in the world has such a treasure. The main value is one of his greatest canvases - a portrait of the Arnolfini couple. Here you can also get acquainted with the work of Memling, Kampen, Christus, Bosk, van der Weyden, Boats and other stars of the Netherlandish painting. In addition, you will see canvasesRubens, Brueghel, Rembrandt, van Dyck.
Don't ignore the works of Vermeer of Delft, a Dutch artist of the 16th century. The British Museum possesses two of his works. This, believe me, is a lot. The most mysterious of the Dutch artists, Vermeer, left behind so few works that they are all in a special account in the world. Even in his native Holland, only six of his paintings can be seen.
The works of famous Spaniards - Murillo, El Greco, Ribera, Goya, Zurbaran are quite widely represented in the museum. The work of the greatest painter of Spain, Diego Velasquez, is represented by nine canvases, and among them there is one of his most famous works - "Venus in front of a mirror".
The gallery's German collection is not that extensive. Nevertheless, the works of such great masters as Cranach, Altdorfer, Holbein, Dürer, Poussin, Watteau are on display at the museum.
