Consigning dusty old museum to pages of history

IT WAS spring 1866 and for thousands of excited Edinburgh folk crammed into and around the brand new Chambers Street museum, its royal opening was to be a highlight of the year.

On a brilliant sunny May day flags fluttered from buildings, shops closed to mark the celebration and Victorian Edinburgh squeezed into every available space to greet young Prince Alfred with what The Scotsman reported as being: "every demonstration of loyalty".

Queen Victoria's son was to open the impressive new Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art. Its cavernous interior was stuffed with curiosities like the Potomogle Velox – a giant otter shrew – specially brought from Old Calabar; the remains of an alligator from South America; and 12 live rattlesnakes transported from Philidelphia.

Not for these curators the modern day delights of whirring machines with buttons to push, flashing lights and computer programmes. Not even foam teapots and storytelling, dinosaur digs and artificial animal smells.

The gas lighting was novelty enough. All those mod cons, they'd have to wait for.

Today the shutters remain firmly closed at the 144-year-old museum, now known simply as the Royal Museum. But inside, and with the same kind of laborious evolution that led to the eventual creation of its finest specimens, a new museum for the 21st century is gradually emerging from behind its stern Victorian facade.

This new incarnation is about to sweep away the notion of dusty and dry museums forever, to replace it with a family-friendly, high-tech one that would have had those excitable Victorians elbowing their prestigious royal visitor out of the way to reach.

Next month marks two years since the museum closed for its 46 million refurbishment, when exhibits – including a fully-grown elephant – were catalogued, wrapped and sent to storage.

There's still another year to wait until it's finished. Yet, already work is nearing the final stages on the vital elements that will transform it from a staid masterpiece of glass cases and "do not touch" notices, to a surprisingly lively, fun-filled and hands-on family attraction, where even the youngest and noisiest tot is welcomed.

"It's very exciting and great fun," explains learning and programmes manager Emma Webb, who is working with the museum's curators to integrate vital educational elements with the whiz, bang and pop of the new interactive displays.

"Rather than having a museum that's full of galleries that has nothing really interesting for families other than occasional workshops, we wanted family learning experiences within the galleries," she adds. "So there'll be two new galleries that will be entirely interactive, developed for a family audience."

Until now, the goldfish ponds in what was the main entrance hall were the biggest attraction for young children in the strait-laced galleries of natural history, science and geology.

When it reopens in autumn next year, they'll be treated to a family-friendly "playground" that aims to combine learning with fun across 16 revamped galleries, including two aimed directly at younger visitors.

Located on the top floor of the Natural World galleries will be Adventure Planet – where older children will explore the natural world through a variety of fun activities and challenges.

Back down at ground floor level – in place of the goldfish – will be the Imagine gallery for the very youngest visitors.

"Imagine is the most different gallery," Emma adds. "We'll take the most exciting objects from the collections and use them as a starting point for activities that families can share together.

"There'll be activities based around objects that involve the children thinking about or telling stories, doing art or making music. We'll have things like a tall column case full of teapots and we'll have big foam shapes so the children can design and shape their own teapot.

"And there'll be a 16th century marble tabletop with a beautiful landscape scene – a real object from our Scotland and Europe collection – with a 3D version alongside for children to create their own landscapes."

While the little ones are being entertained by giant foam teapots, older children will be drawn via stunning glass lifts to Adventure Planet to dig for dinosaur "bones" overlooked by skeleton casts of the real things, and to search a sprawling replica oak tree for hidden birds and mammals.

Scattered throughout the museum's 16 galleries will be objects – some real, others replicas – which can be handled or, in the case of the Life Sciences galleries, smelled and heard.

"What we want to do is get visitors to use all their sense to visualise, so there'll be lots of touching of real things like horns and skulls and antlers," explains Lyndsey Clarke, the museum's interactive displays manager.

"Where we look at how animals use smell, there'll be little pots with lids on so you can sniff some of these repulsive smells which animals use to repel each other.

"And the animal sounds gallery, where we'll look at how bats and dolphins use sound, will offer lots to listen to.

"What we had before was a text panel which said this animal had good sense of smell or would communicate like this. In the new museum, you will be able to experience it."

These hands-on elements aren't simple gimmicks – they make learning fun and interesting for all ages, she adds.

She argues against suggestions that this new interactive era as a giant leap from Victorian learning into modern dumbing down. "What we've tried to do is use technology where we can to provide information," she adds.

"Where there is a slightly more adult area, such as the gallery of world art, the items will have all the top level information on a touch screen – so if you want the detailed information it will be there, you just have to put in a little more effort to get to it.

"We believe we'll be catering for both the family visitor and the one who wants detailed information.

"Families come to the museum to spend leisure time together. It's not a degree course in natural sciences. It's about enjoying leisure time."

WEIRD AND WONDERFUL ADDITIONS

THE museum's principal curator of vertebrate biology – the man who manages the taxidermy department – Andrew Kitchener, is also preparing a fresh twist for the new look Royal Museum.

However, his journey to Australia to pick up a selection of new creatures for the natural history galleries, was nearly scuppered.

"The freezers broke down in the Melbourne museum where our specimens were being kept," he explains.

"It meant there were few things we weren't able to bring back and there was a mild panic over what to do."

In the end, he managed to collect more specimens than he'd anticipated, including a new koala to replace the museum's original, which dates back to 1871.

It's not just the actual specimens that are interesting, he adds. It's their fascinating, unique and sometimes quirky features.

"We'll have a platypus and explain how it uses electrical sense to detect shrimps, and a tawny frogmouth, a bird which looks like an owl and pretends to be a tree stump during the day."