Museum

A museum is an institution that shows and preserves important objects from culture or science. Many museums have exhibitions where people can see these objects, and some also keep collections that researchers and experts study. Museums may focus on many different topics, such as the arts, science, natural history, or local history.

Museums that have exhibitions and fun activities are often popular places for tourists to visit. Some of the most visited museums in the world welcome millions of people every year.

Museums have a long history, starting from the earliest known museum in ancient times. At first, museums began as private collections of rare and interesting items. Later, their role in teaching the public became very important.

Etymology

The word museum comes from Latin and is the same in its plural form, museums. It originally comes from Ancient Greek, where it meant a place for the muses—the goddesses of the arts in Greek stories. This idea of a special place for learning and the arts was used in a famous building for philosophy and research in a city called Alexandria, built around 280 BC.

Purpose

Museums collect, protect, and show objects that are important to our culture, history, or science. They help us learn by displaying these objects and creating programs that teach people. Museums also help keep history safe for future generations.

Over time, museums have changed what they focus on. In the past, they were mostly for scientists and scholars. Today, museums want to include everyone and use technology to share their collections online. They also talk about important issues and help people from different backgrounds feel welcome. Whether they are showing art, science, or local history, museums work to make learning fun and accessible for all.

Main article: International Council of Museums

Main articles: American Alliance of Museums, Institute of Museum and Library Services

History

Ancient

One of the oldest museums known is Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum, built by Princess Ennigaldi in modern Iraq at the end of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The site dates from around 530 BC and contained items from earlier Mesopotamian civilizations. A special clay drum label written in three languages was found there, talking about the history and finding of a museum item.

Ancient Greeks and Romans collected and showed art and objects but thought about museums differently from today. In those times, museums were temples and their areas, which held gifts given to gods. Paintings and sculptures were shown in gardens, markets, theaters, and bathhouses. Back then, there was little difference between libraries and museums, as both were in the same building and were often connected to a temple or royal palace. The Museum of Alexandria, which was the same as the Library of Alexandria, inspired the early Renaissance period, so libraries were once called museums. Royal palaces and temples, like the Roman temple of Peace, also worked as museums. They held art and objects from places they had taken over and gifts from other kingdoms, letting the ruler show these collections to guests and important visitors.

Also in Alexandria, from the time of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (r. 285–246 BCE), there was the first zoo. At first, Philadelphus tried to train African elephants for war, but they were also shown along with other animals like hartebeests, ostriches, zebras, leopards, giraffes, rhinoceros, and pythons.

Early

See also: List of museums from the 18th century

The Capitoline Museums (Musei Capitolini), located on the Capitoline Hill in Rome, Italy, are thought to be the world's oldest public museum. They began in 1471 when Pope Sixtus IV gave a collection of important old bronze sculptures to the people of Rome. This first gift, which included famous pieces like the Capitoline Wolf, started what would become a big collection of Roman art and items. The museums opened to the public in 1734 under Pope Clement XII, making them the first place where art could be seen by ordinary people, not just owners.

The Capitoline Museums are important because they show a big change in how art was owned and shared. They moved from being private collections to belonging to everyone. The museums have grown over time to include old Roman statues, medieval and Renaissance art, jewelry, coins, and other historic items.

Vatican Museums (Musei Vaticani), located in Vatican City, Rome, hold a big collection of art and historic items collected by the Catholic Church over many years. They began when a single marble sculpture, Laocoön and His Sons, was bought and shown to the public in 1506 by Pope Julius II.

Other early museums started as private collections of wealthy people, families, or groups, holding art and rare or interesting natural objects and artifacts. These were often shown in "wonder rooms" or cabinets of curiosities. These collections first appeared in western Europe and then spread to other parts of the world.

People could usually see these collections only if the owner and staff allowed it. During this time, wealthy men showed off their status by collecting and showing these interesting objects. Many of these items were new discoveries, and collectors, who were often interested in natural sciences, wanted to get them. By putting their collections in museums and showing them, they could display their amazing finds and organize the many new items that were being discovered because of travel, new texts, and better ways to share information.

One of these collectors was Ulisse Aldrovandi, whose way of collecting was to gather as many objects and facts about them as possible, like the Roman philosopher and scientist Pliny. The idea was to collect and display as much knowledge as possible. But later, in the 18th century, during the Age of Enlightenment, scholars thought museums should be organized and sorted by groups rather than just showing everything in any order.

The Ashmolean Museum, founded in 1677 from the personal collection of Elias Ashmole, was set up at the University of Oxford to be open to the public. The collection included items Elias Ashmole gathered himself, like antique coins, books, drawings, rocks, and animals—one was the stuffed body of the last dodo seen in Europe; but by 1755, the stuffed dodo was so damaged by moths that it was destroyed, except for its head and one claw. The museum opened on May 24, 1683, with naturalist Robert Plot as the first keeper. The first building, known as the Old Ashmolean, is sometimes said to be by Sir Christopher Wren or Thomas Wood.

When the British Museum opened to the public in 1759, there was worry that too many people might damage the items. Visitors had to ask to enter, and only small groups were allowed in each day. The British Museum became very popular in the 19th century, with people of all ages and backgrounds visiting, especially on public holidays.

In France, the first public museum was the Louvre in Paris, opened in 1793 during the French Revolution. For the first time, the former French royal collections could be seen by everyone, no matter their status. The amazing art collected by the French monarchy over many years was open to the public three days each "décade" (the 10-day week used in the French Republican Calendar). The Conservatoire du muséum national des Arts (National Museum of Arts's Conservatory) was in charge of organizing the Louvre as a national public museum and the main part of a planned national museum system. As Napoléon I took over big cities in Europe, he took art objects with him, so the collections grew and organizing them became harder. After Napoleon lost in 1815, many of the treasures he took were returned to their owners (but many were not). His idea of a museum as a way to build national pride had a big effect across Europe.

Chinese and Japanese people visiting Europe were interested in the museums they saw but found it hard to understand their purpose. In the early 19th century, Chinese visitors named these places based on what they held, calling them things like "bone amassing buildings" or "courtyards of treasures" or "painting pavilions" or "curio stores" or "halls of military feats" or "gardens of everything". Japan learned about Western museums when they joined Europe's World's Fairs in the 1860s. One Japanese delegate described the British Museum as a 'hakubutsukan', meaning a 'house of extensive things' – this name eventually became the word for 'museum' in Japan and China.

Modern

American museums later joined European museums as important places for creating new knowledge in their areas. From the late 19th to early 20th centuries, many museums were built, both in ideas and in real buildings (called "The Museum Period" or "The Museum Age"). While many American museums, like natural history and art museums, started to focus on discoveries and art in North America, many also tried to copy European museums in some ways, including adding collections from ancient Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, and Rome. Commercial museums also appeared in business schools in Europe and Japan...Drawing on ideas from Michel Foucault, Tony Bennett suggested that modern 19th-century museums were part of new ways for Western governments to help people control their own behavior. By making museums public, objects and items, especially those about high culture, became tools for these "new tasks of social management". Universities became the main places for new research in the United States before World War II. Even today, museums keep creating new knowledge and building collections useful for research and showing people.

Management

The way a museum is run depends on its size. The Board and the Director work together to create rules and plans that guide the museum. These include plans for what the museum wants to achieve, rules for ethical behavior, and policies for taking care of objects.

• Board of Trustees or Board of directors – The board helps make sure the museum is safe and well-run. They set rules and help raise money.
• Executive Director – The director leads the museum, sets goals, and makes sure staff are doing their jobs well. They work with the board to create plans and get money from donors and grants.

Museums have many different jobs to help them run. Some of these jobs include:

• Curator – Curators take care of the museum's collections. They study objects, decide if they are real, and plan exhibitions.

• Collections Manager – Collections managers look after the objects in the museum. They keep records, make sure objects are safe, and help move them when needed.

• Registrar – Registrars keep detailed records of all the objects in the museum. They handle loans, make sure everything is labeled correctly, and check that objects are in good condition.

• Educator – Educators help teach people about the museum's collections. They create tours and programs for kids and adults.

• Exhibit Designer – Exhibit designers plan how the museum's displays look. They decide where to put objects and how to make the exhibits easy to understand.

• Conservator – Conservators help protect the museum's objects. They fix damage, clean objects, and make sure they are stored safely.

Other jobs in museums can include photographers, librarians, archivists, and more. In smaller museums, one person might do many different jobs.

Planning

See also: Museum planning and Interpretive planning

The way museums are built and organized has changed a lot over time. When planning a museum, leaders think about what the museum wants to achieve and how to create a space that can hold their collections. One important person in museum planning was John Cotton Dana, who wrote about how to start a museum in the early 1900s. He suggested that people who want to start a museum should talk to their community to learn what they need and want.

Museums try to make sure everyone can visit them easily. Some museums now use "open storage," where people can see items that are not on display. This helps everyone learn more about the museum's collections. Modern museums also use many different ways to tell stories, such as pictures, sounds, and interactive exhibits.

Museums are organized in special ways so each visitor can enjoy the collection differently. This makes museums interesting because everyone sees something unique.

Financial uses

See also: Economic theory of museums

Cities sometimes build museums to help their economies grow. For example, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, was built to renew an old part of the city. After it opened, many visitors came from other places, which helped the local economy and brought in more money than was spent to build it.

Another example is Titanic Belfast in Northern Ireland, which also brought many visitors and helped the local economy. In the United States, museums like the Taubman Museum of Art in Virginia and The Broad in Los Angeles have also helped create jobs and bring in money for their cities.

Funding

Museums need money to operate, and they get it from different sources. In the United States, funding comes from government support, private donations, money made from activities like admission fees, and investment income. Sometimes, museums face money problems, especially when government funding decreases. Companies can also help by donating money, which is important for museums to stay open and active.

Exhibition design

Main article: Exhibit design

Many museums have special teams that help design their displays. These teams include artists, builders, and technology experts who work together to create interesting and fun exhibits. They follow a plan to decide the best way to share information and tell stories through their displays.

Some people wonder if museums still need real objects. With new technology, many museums now use interactive displays instead of showing many items. This change helps museums focus on teaching visitors, especially children, in ways that are more engaging and fun.

Types

Museums come in many different forms and sizes. Some are huge, while others are small and focus on just one topic, like a special place, a famous person, or a certain time period. They can also differ based on who supports them, such as governments, schools, towns, or private groups.

Museums can be grouped in various ways. Some show how things have changed over time, while others focus on how things looked at one specific moment. They can also be organized by what they display, such as art, science, history, or natural history. Within these broad groups, many museums become even more specialized, like those focused on modern art, local history, or aviation.

Current challenges

Decolonization

See also: Decolonisation of knowledge

Since the late 20th century, many people have talked about changing museums so they tell fuller stories. Some say museums only show one side of history, missing important parts. This idea is called decolonizing museums.

In 2018, a report talked about returning cultural items to Africa. Many African countries want items taken from their homes long ago to be brought back.

Some big stone figures called Moai from Easter Island are in museums in other countries. The people of Easter Island want them back because these figures are very important to them.

Repatriation of human remains

In the United States, a law called NAGPRA helps return human remains and important objects to Native American tribes and families. This law started in 1990.

In Europe, different countries have different rules about returning human remains. Some museums are working to return these items to the people they belong to.

Labor issues and unionization

More workers in museums are joining together to ask for better pay and conditions. Over 15,000 museum workers in the United States are now in unions.

In the past, museum workers started joining together to ask for better treatment. In 1971, workers at a famous museum in New York formed one of the first unions for museum employees.

Union actions

Strikes and picketing

Museum workers have sometimes stopped working to ask for better pay and conditions. For example, security guards at a museum in Seattle stopped working for 11 days in 2024 and got better pay as a result.

Protests and public demonstrations

Workers have also held protests to show they are unhappy with decisions made by museum leaders. In 2025, workers at a museum in Brooklyn protested when leaders planned to let many workers go without talking to their union first.

Sustainability and climate change

See also: Green museum

Museums are also trying to help the environment. They are changing how they use energy and showing exhibits about climate change.

Digital culture

As more things happen online, museums are changing too. They are creating new ways for people to visit and learn online.