Míriam Alba i Víctor Rodríguez BATX 1 – C 07/02/2010

THE BRITISH MUSEUM

• The British Museum is a museum

of human history and culture situated
in North of London, in Bloomsbury’s
neighbourhood. Its collection, which
has more than seven million objects, is
one of the largest and most
comprehensive in the world and
originates from all continents,
illustrating and documenting the story
of human culture from its beginning to the present. We can find everything from
prehistoric bones and Parthenon’s shards to exhibition halls like Assyrian
palaces and golden jewels.

• The British Museum was founded in 1753, was mainly based on the
collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane and it was the first
national public museum in the world. The visitor has never had to pay to get in.
Visitor numbers have grown around 5,000 a
year in the eighteenth century to nearly 6
million today.

• Some objects in the collection, like the

Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, are the
objects of intense controversy and calls for
restitution to their countries of origin.

Queen Elizabeth II Great Court, the largest covered square

in Europe, surrounding the original Reading Room.

• Departments:
o Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan
o Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities
o Department of the Middle East
o Department of Prints and Drawings
o Department of Asia
o Department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas
o Department of Coins and Medals
o Department of Prehistory and Europe

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Míriam Alba i Víctor Rodríguez BATX 1 – C 07/02/2010

o Department of Conservation, Documentation and Science

o Libraries and Archives

Panorama of the circular Reading Room

• Some outstanding collections and pieces:

- The Elgin Marbles: an extensive

collection of Greek marbles from the
Parthenon. The collection represents more
than half of the decorative sculptures of
the Parthenon.

- The Portland Vase: Is a Roman vase built in

the first century, which has been the inspiration for
many manufacturers of glass and porcelain from the
early eighteenth century onwards.

- Warren Cup: Is a Roman silver cup. It is unique

because it is decorated with homoerotic
representations, two explicit sexual acts between men,
of great artistic quality.

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- Rosetta Stone: It contains a text in three types

of writing and it is important because it has been the
key to decipher the hieroglyphics of the ancient
Egyptians.

- Royal Game of Ur: It refers to two games

found on the Royal Tombs of Ur by Sir Leonard
Woolley in the 1920s. The two tablets date from
the First Dynasty of Ur, before 2600 BC. Ur
Royal Game is probably the oldest board game
set found.

• How to get to the British Museum:

Tottenham Court Road (300m): Central line and Northern line

(Charing Cross branch)
By underground Holborn (500m): Central line and Piccadilly line
Russell Square (800m): Piccadilly line
Goodge Street (800m): Northern line (Charing Cross branch)
Location Great Russell Street, WC2