A first (preliminary?) trip to the British Museum

Well, we woke up --- with jet lag gone, and decided that a trip to the British Museum would be the most fun.

Before a short summary of that, a digression into cell phones -- I must say that the system is much better here in the UK, than in Canada. For about $10, I got a SIM card, allowing me to use my phone. Then, I could also add any amount onto that card, and, the best part, all incoming calls (even international ones) are free. Furthermore, even if I had no money on my account, I could still receive calls -- now that is great! (So a shameless plug for Virgin Mobile, and I hope that the Canadian mobile servicers make some changes in their systems).

Back to the more interesting stuff -- the british museum. It is huge -- the main halll is the largest indoor square in Europe, probably 500 m on a side. It is a beautiful structure, which is mostly lit by ambient light (in a very interesting design). In the centre of the hall, there is a rotunda, filled with almost a million books.

This structure used to be the national library of britain (before that structure moved out). However, now, it is still a pretty impressive library -- and all its volumes (including some pretty old ones) are open to the public (for free).

I tore myself away from the library only with great difficulty, but the rest of the museum was more than worth it.

The British Museum could probably be called the prototype museum. There are so many great pieces, that they are simply scattered hither and tither, without much fanfare. Half the pieces are open to the air, with no glass enclosures -- amazing for a museum. Pieces which, in any other museum, would be worth the trip alone, were surrounded by a throng of people numbering exactly zero.

One good example was the Ram among the Thickets, probably the most famous Sumerian piece, taken from the city of Ur.


Anyway, I have attached a few more pictures, but as mentioned in the subject, these are just some preliminary pictures, from a preliminary museum visit.

We expect to return to the museum tomorrow (for the really spectacular pieces, which we decided to skip on our first day).

So, to the rosetta stone, and the Elgin Marbles ... tomorrow.