Museum facts for kids
A museum ( mew-ZEE-əm; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these items available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. The largest museums are located in major cities throughout the world, while thousands of local museums exist in smaller cities, towns, and rural areas. Museums have varying aims, ranging from the conservation and documentation of their collection, serving researchers and specialists to catering to the general public. The goal of serving researchers is not only scientific, but intended to serve the general public.
There are many types of museums, including art museums, natural history museums, science museums, war museums, and children's museums. According to the International Council of Museums (ICOM), there are more than 55,000 museums in 202 countries.
Contents
History
The word, museum, originates Musa which are the goddesses of literature, art, and science who appear in Greek mythology.
According to the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the definition of museums has changed over time.
The oldest museum structure in the world is the Shōsō-in in Nara, Japan.
Today's museums are non-profit, permanent institutions in the service of society and its development.
Function
A museum acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible heritage and the intangible heritage of humanity and the environment.
Museums exist for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.
Some museums have things that visitors can do.
Museums can be about different things such as art, national history, natural history, or science. People go to museums sometimes to learn, or to simply have fun.
Museums with live animals are called zoos.
Exhibitions
- Temporary or changing exhibits
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- Exhibition which selects works along with some themes, e.g., a writer, a time, an area, etc.
- Permanent exhibits
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- Exhibition which displays the works which the museum possesses.
Gallery
Art museums
History museums
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The Tōhoku History Museum in Miyagi
Literature museums
Natural history museums
Open air museums
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Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine is a World Heritage Site in Shimane Prefecture, Japan
Science museums
Museum ships
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Cutty Sark in London, England
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Nippon Maru in Yokohama harbor
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National Museum, Szczecin, Poland
Most visited museums
This section lists the 20 most visited museums as compiled by AECOM and the Themed Entertainment Association's annual report on the world's most visited attractions. The cities of London and Washington, D.C. contain more of the 20 most visited museums in the world than any others, with six museums and four museums, respectively.
Rank | Museum | City | Country | Visitor count (annually) |
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Louvre | Paris | France | 8,600,000 |
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National Museum of China | Beijing | China | 7,290,000 |
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National Museum of Natural History | Washington, D.C. | United States | 6,900,000 |
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National Air and Space Museum | Washington, D.C. | United States | 6,900,000 |
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British Museum | London | United Kingdom | 6,820,686 |
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York City | United States | 6,533,106 |
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Vatican Museums | Vatican City (Rome) | Vatican City | 6,002,251 |
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Shanghai Science and Technology Museum | Shanghai | China | 5,948,000 |
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National Gallery | London | United Kingdom | 5,908,254 |
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National Palace Museum | Taipei | Taiwan | 5,301,860 |
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Natural History Museum, London | London | United Kingdom | 5,284,023 |
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American Museum of Natural History | New York City | United States | 5,000,000 |
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Tate Modern | London | United Kingdom | 4,712,581 |
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National Gallery of Art | Washington, D.C. | United States | 4,104,331 |
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National Museum of American History | Washington, D.C. | United States | 4,100,000 |
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State Hermitage Museum | St. Petersburg | Russia | 3,668,031 |
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Musée d'Orsay | Paris | France | 3,440,000 |
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Victoria and Albert Museum | London | United Kingdom | 3,432,325 |
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The Science Museum | London | United Kingdom | 3,356,212 |
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Reina Sofía | Madrid | Spain | 3,249,591 |
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The British Museum in London.
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The State Historical Museum in Moscow.
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The Museum Island in Berlin.
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The Orthodox Church, later an Ottoman mosque, and now a museum, Hagia Sophia was once the pride of the Byzantine Empire. Historically located in Constantinople, is now modern day Istanbul, Turkey.
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The Museo del Prado in Madrid (est. 1785).
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The Peristylia hall in National Museum of Indonesia in Jakarta, the largest and one of the oldest museum in Indonesia.
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Pérez Art Museum in Miami, Florida.
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Exhibit in Indonesia Museum, Jakarta, displaying the traditional costumes of Indonesian ethnic groups, such as Balinese and East Java.
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Viewers of the Doni Tondo by Michelangelo in the Uffizi Gallery.
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Museum of Modern Art, New York.
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The Buell Children's Museum in Pueblo, Colorado was ranked #2 children's art museum in the United States by Child Magazine.
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Taiwan Design Museum in Taiwan.
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The queen's chamber in Petit Trianon, former residence of Marie Antoinette.
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The golden funerary mask of Tutankhamun, Egyptian Museum of Cairo
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Iron bed in torture room at Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
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Narayanhity Palace Museum (formerly Narayanhiti Royal Palace) in Kathmandu, Nepal.
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The Canadian War Museum.
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Diplodocus fossil exhibit in Minnesota Science Museum.
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Antique cuckoo clocks in the interior of Cuckooland Museum.
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The Creation Museum is a Christian creationism museum run by Answers in Genesis.
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Zoos are considered "living museums". This is the entrance of the San Diego Zoo in San Diego, California.
Images for kids
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National Dinosaur Museum, Canberra, Australia
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One of the earlist known museum labels, from Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum in Ur, c. 530 BC.
See also
In Spanish: Museo para niños