Museum of London

Our visit to the Museum of London was a bit different from our others, in that it did not involve a library. However, the work of a museum curator does overlap with that of a librarian in some areas, such as researching, creating displays, and cataloguing collections. On this visit, the curator of prehistory, Jon Cotton, was our guide.
He began with a slide show offering an overview of the museum's history, and also that of the prehistory collection, which are in some ways at odds. As the world's largest urban history museum, it focuses on the history of London as a city, which really began with Roman occupation in the first century A.D. Well, the Romans, as a literate people, are disqualified from being classified as 'prehistorical'. So the issue Mr. Cotton has faced is that of presenting the prehistory of the place which would become London.
His task was made more difficult by the lack of inclusion in the national school curriculum of prehistorical Britain, as well as the public's lack of in-depth understanding of what, exactly, prehistorical times were (the second problem resulting at least in part from the first, I'm sure).

In order to get an idea of where they were starting from, the museum surveyed visitors about what the term 'prehistory' meant to them, and discovered that people's initial responses tended to be superficial and stereotypical - for example, dinosaurs (the most popular answer), Flintstones, and cavemen - even after viewing the exhibits.
The museum wanted to create an exhibit which would help visitors to think of prehistoric people as having the same complexities as modern people, ingenious and adaptable in their response to the world, and as individuals. Mr. Cotton felt these were the keys to changing the public's perception.
When the new prehistory gallery was being planned, the design company chosen had a retail rather than a museum background, since the museum wanted a different approach. The curators wanted to focus on four key messages:

• Climate: because of its affect on people and their effect on it
  
• The River: as the central element of London's existence
• The People: prehistoric does not mean 'savage' or 'idiot'
• Legacy: the 'history' - as it were - of the prehistoric people of the area did not end with the arrival of the Romans, but continued on alongside Roman life.

Within the context of these desired messages, three design elements were decided upon:

• A Landscape Wall along the outer wall of the room, used to provide a setting for the environment - natural and manmade - in which the prehistoric people lived: This area contains images of the natural world, including those in which prehistoric sites have been found; carved wooden diagrams of regional archaeological sites; and excerpts of narratives meant to reflect the possible experience of the prehistoric residents of the sites. These elements are arranged in the form of a timeline, moving from the earliest times to the present.
  
• A series of plinths arranged within the space to display the artifacts and tell the story: The plinths are set up to take the visitor through the room chronologically. In addition to the usual artifacts and their explanations are videos showing how objects were made and used, in some cases by real people - such as how a large piece of flint would have been worked down into a handaxe - in some cases using computer animation.
  
• A River Wall along the inner wall of the room, consisting of glass display cases backlit in blue, to emphasize the place of the river: This is used to display the many artifacts found in the Thames itself.

I especially liked the way that audio tracks were used to help set the atmosphere, not just in the prehistory room, but in the various exhibits. The prehistory room featured mainly bird and animal sounds, where the Roman exhibit consisted of street sounds such as voices and cart wheels on stone.

Overall, Mr. Cotton impressed upon me his strong belief in the powerful effect of place on people, and how integral that sense of place is to understanding people. The very personal connection he feels for 'his' people contributes greatly to the effectiveness of his displays.