Welcome to the 24 Hour Museum news in brief page for the week ending April 27 2008.
25.04.2008 - Chirk Castle hosts 'It's Your History' open weekend
Chirk Castle, near Wrexham is hosting an ‘It's Your History’ weekend on April 26 and 27 with free entry to all local people.
As part of the castle’s ‘Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow’ community project, staff at the medieval fortress hope the weekend will help them discover and record local people’s links to the castle.
A team of volunteers will be on hand, ready to record oral histories and scan any photographs brought along.
The castle is also launching a newly researched ‘Servants Database’ created by a small team of volunteer archivists, which gives details of past servants, aided by the memories of local ladies Hilda Wright and Megan Carter. Chirk Castle is the last Edward I Welsh castle still lived in today.
24.04.2008 - York Castle Museum celebrates 70th birthday with free entry this weekend
The Castle Museum in York will be inviting visitors to join in its 70th birthday celebrations this weekend by opening its doors for free on Saturday.
The first 70 visitors will not have to pay, and neither will 70-year-olds, to mark the occasion, and they will be greeted by a re-enactor dressed as the museum's founder, Dr John L Kirk (pictured).
The Castle Museum opened on St George's Day in 1938 with groundbreaking displays such as period rooms showing everyday objects in context, rather than in glass cases. It has welcomed more than 30 million visitors since then. A special chocolate coin has been commissioned to mark the anniversary.
24.04.2008 - Tate unites the London and New York versions of Cy Twombly's great painting cycle The Four Seasons
Tate has announced that it will bring together, for the first time, two of Cy Twombly's great painting series from the 1990s as part of a major exhibition of his work at Tate Modern which opens on June 19 2008.
The announcement coincides with the artist’s 80th birthday on April 25 2008, and will allow the public to see the two great paintings together for the first time since they were parted in Twombly’s studio in the mid 1990s.
Comprising two sets of four enormous canvases, The Four Seasons 1994-5 from the Tate Collection will be united with The Four Seasons 1993-4 from The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.
23.04.2008 - Medical collections mapping survey gets underway
The Medical and Healthcare Subject Specialist Network is carrying out a collection mapping survey to establish a clear picture of the strengths of medical and healthcare collections and related subject expertise across the UK.
The aim of the mapping project is to help improve the use of medical and related collections for public benefit.The project is funded through the Museums Libraries and Archives Council's Renaissance programme.
For further information about the mapping survey or for a copy of the questionnaire contact Steph Gillett, Coordinator, Medical & Healthcare SSN, at: steph.gillett@btinternet.com
22.04.2008 - Uncovering the layers of decorative history at Wimpole Hall
Visitors to the National Trust’s Wimpole Hall this week have the opportunity to uncover the secrets the historic Red Room after conservators have peeled away the layers of decoration that have built up during the room's history.
The Red Room is going to be decorated next year, and initial research has shown the walls are covered with a patterned wallpaper. On top of the wallpaper there are three layers of red paint and beneath the wallpaper are clues to the earliest phases of decoration in the room.
Research has also shown that for the first 150 years of its life, the Red Room was decorated with a predominantly white scheme, with gilding on some of the mouldings around the doors and windows. It was used as a drawing room until the 1840s and as a dining room from the 1840s until World War II.
Once all the research has been completed, a decision will be made about which layer of the rooms historical colour schemes will be chosen to recreate for the start of the 2009 season.
The conservator finishes their work in the Red Room on April 22 at 5pm and a microscope will be in the room for the next two weeks Saturday to Wednesday 1-5pm to see a section of the paint layers.
22.04.2008 - Prince Charles to mark contribution of National Trust volunteers and staff in Wales
HRH Prince Charles will be visiting the National Trust's Bodnant Garden, above the Conwy Valley in Wales, for the first time on April 25 2008.
The Prince will meet many of the unsung heroes, long-term staff and volunteers who have made tremendous contributions to creating and maintaining some of the most renowned historic gardens in Wales.
In conjunction with the Gateway Gardens Trust the visit will be a celebration of the work and dedication shown by many staff and volunteers at all National Trust properties in Wales.
It is the first of a number of garden visits launched by the Gateway Gardens Trust to mark HRH the Prince of Wales’s 60th birthday.
22.05.2008 - Museum of Computing to showcase the wonders of Ubuntu
The Museum of Computing in Swindon is holding an open day on Saturday April 26 between 10am and 4pm to showcase a PC operating system called Ubuntu.
For those less familiar with computing, Ubuntu is a free operating system from the Linux ‘open source’ stable which is an alternative to Microsoft’s Windows operating system.
A community developed Linux operating system for laptops, desktops and servers, Ubuntu is seen by many as being an ethical, free and more reliable alternative to Microsoft. It is used by a variety of users including the John Hopkins University, Wellcome foundation, Contact Air (Lufthansa) and the French Police Force.
The Museum of Computing recently announced it is looking for a new home from July 2008 when the University of Bath in Swindon vacates the premises. There are a number of options under review but until then they say it is ‘business as usual’.
21.04.2008 - Melton Carnegie Museum receives £1m lottery boost
The Melton Carnegie Museum in Leicestershire has recieved a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund of almost £1m, which will enable the museum near Melton Mowbray to double in size, with additional permanent displays focusing on rural life.
The grant of £969,000 will enable extensions to the ground floor and first floor at the back of the museum. It is hoped the work will be completed by the end of 2009.
Melton Carnegie Museum houses the UK's only hunting museum.
21.04.2008 - Yearly chance to see the rhododendron garden at Plas Newydd
Over 50 varieties of rhododendron crammed into the five acre fairytale-like garden at Plas Newydd, Llanfairpwll will be a fusion of fragrance and colour as it opens to the public this week.
One of the UK's finest mansion house settings, with large gardens and woodland walks, the rhododendron garden at Plas Newydd is only open for a limited time during the year (usually between April and early June) depending on how early the flowers bloom.
Started in 1937 by the 6th Marquess of Anglesey, the garden offers a striking contrast to the intricate formal gardens which surround the house.
"The rhododendron garden is a real people’s garden," said John Dennis, who has been head gardener at Plas Newydd for the last 27 years. "It invites visitors to explore its nooks and crannies. It’s an attraction not to be missed during a visit to Plas Newydd.”
21.04.2008 - Civil war skirmish will erupt at Donington le Heath wedding
On Saturday April 26 a society wedding will erupt into a skirmish with muskets, pikes and cannons. After a meeting of the lords of the midlands, to decide if they should support the return of the King, a skirmish erupts which leads to a King vs. parliament battle.
On Sunday April 27 it will be a more peaceful day with the tented encampments being used for living history displays and drill.
The event – called a St George’s Day Wedding 1651 - is being organised by local re-enactment group, the Society of the Open Rope, with support from other groups. Entrance to the event and parking is free.
