– 1683
An
English archeologist named Elias Ashmole cleaned out his attic. There
were all sorts of interesting items and “curiosities” that he had
collected in his life...What to do with it all?
Ashmole
decided to donate his stuff to Oxford University.
University
personnel hired the famous architect Sir Christopher Wren to design a
building to house the collection, and on this date in 1683, the
building was finished, the exhibits installed, and the museum opened
to the public.
It
was the world's first university museum, and even the word museum
was new to English!
Exhibits...then
and now...
Ashmole
donated antique coins, books, engravings, rocks and minerals, and
stuffed (or taxidermied) animals, including the last Dodo bird ever
seen in Europe. (Unfortunately, the Dodo was eaten by moths, and only
the head and one claw are still around today.) The museum now
contains fine art and archeological specimens: Pre-Raphaelite
paintings, English silver, Greek and Minoan pottery, Egyptian
antiquities, the ceremonial cloak of Pocahontas's father, the death
mask of military leader/villain-and-hero Oliver Cromwell, ceremonial
clothes owned by Lawrence of Arabia, and much, much more.
Celebrate!
If
there is a college or university near you, check out the campus.
There may well be a musuem somewhere on the grounds! Enjoy!
Also
on this date:
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