Museum Origins: Readings in Early Museum History and Philosophy

by Genoways,Hugh H

• ISBN13: 9781598741971
• ISBN10: 1598741977
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2009-08-15
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

With the development of institutions displaying natural science, history, and art in the late 19th century came the debates over the role of these museum in society. This anthology collects 52 of the most important writings on museum philosophy dating from this formative period, written by the many of the American and European founders of the field. Genoways and Andrei contextualize these pieces with a series of introductions showing how the museum field developed within the social environment of the era. For those interested in museum history and philosophy or cultural history, this is an essential resource.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. 9
About the Editors	p. 11
Museum Origins	p. 13
Geography	p. 15
Rerum Rusticarum Libri Tres	p. 17
The Life and Times of Anthony Wood, Antiquary, of Oxford, 1632-1695, described by Himself, Collected from his Diaries and Other Papers	p. 19
My Design in Forming this Museum	p. 23
The Mount Vernon Association	p. 29
A Word About Museums	p. 33
The History of the Origin and Development of Museums	p. 39
Museum Philosophy	p. 49
An Address on the Practical Value of the American Museum	p. 51
Purposes and Aims of Modern Museums	p. 57
The Functions of Museums	p. 61
War Museums	p. 65
Museums and the People	p. 69
State and Local Historical Societies	p. 73
On the Ideal Relations of Public Libraries, Museums, and Art Gallery to the City	p. 79
The Art Museum and the Public	p. 83
English Art Connoisseurship and Collecting	p. 91
The New Museum	p. 97
The Use and Abuse of Museums	p. 99
The Relationships and Responsibilities of Museums	p. 111
Modern Museums	p. 125
Museum Ideals of Purpose and Method	p. 129
The New Museum	p. 137
The Museum Conscience	p. 143
Museum Ethics	p. 147
Museum Education	p. 153
The Children's Museum as an Educator	p. 155
The Relation of the Museum to the Schools	p. 161
If Public Libraries, Why Not Public Museums?	p. 165
The Museum in Educational Work	p. 171
The Museum, the Original Exponent of Visual Education	p. 175
The Function of the Museum Instructor	p. 179
Museums and Other Classified Collections as Instruments of Education in Natural Science	p. 183
The Place of Museums in Education	p. 187
The Museum's Part in the Making of Americans	p. 191
The Museum's Educational Credo	p. 195
Museum Exhibition	p. 199
Museum for the People	p. 201
The Improvements Effected in Modern Museums of Europe and Australia	p. 209
The Dulness of Museums	p. 217
The Anthropological Exhibits at the American Museum of Natural History	p. 225
Some Principles of Museum Administration	p. 231
Modern Exhibitional Tendencies of Museums of Natural History and Ethnology Designed for Public Use	p. 241
Museums and Universities	p. 249
On the Educational Uses of Museums	p. 251
The Social Museum as an Instrument of University Teaching	p. 257
The Relation of the Art Museum to a University	p. 261
Training Museum Workers	p. 265
Museums and Their Purpose	p. 269
Philosophy of Museums with Living Collections	p. 275
Botanical Gardens	p. 277
The Missouri Botanical Garden	p. 283
The Arnold Arboretum: What it is and Does	p. 289
Zoological Gardens, a Critical Essay	p. 293
The Making of a Zoological-park Masterpiece	p. 297
Administration of the Public Aquarium	p. 303
References	p. 307
About the Authors	p. 319
Index	p. 339
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