Page 63 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Europe

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VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Oriental Art
Fine porcelain and ancient Practical Information
Shang bronzes (c.1500–1050 BC) Great Russell St WC1.
are highlights of the museum’s Tel 020-7323 8299.
Chinese collection. Particularly Open 10am–5:30pm daily
impressive are the ceremonial (to 8:30pm Fri). Closed Jan 1,
ancient Chinese bronze vessels, Dec 24–26. 8 7 0 - =
∑ thebritishmuseum.org
with their enigmatic animal-
head shapes. The fine Chinese Transport
ceramics range from delicate tea @ 7, 8, 10, 14, 19, 24, 25, 29, 30,
bowls to a model pond which 38, 55, 68, 134, 188.
is almost a thousand years old. 1 Tottenham Court Road,
The Portland Vase, depicting the betrothal Adjacent to these is one of the Holborn, Russell Square.
of Peleus and Thetis finest collections of Asian
religious sculpture outside India.
These include an assortment of Buddhist temple at Amarati,
Greece and Rome
sculpted reliefs which once and which recount stories
The Greek and Roman covered the walls of the from the life of the Buddha. A
collections include the Korean section contains some
museum’s most famous gigantic works of Buddhist art.
treasure, the Elgin Marbles. Islamic art, including a stunning
These 5th-century BC reliefs jade terrapin found in a water
from the Parthenon once tank, can be found in Room 34.
comprised a marble frieze Rooms 90–94 house temporary
which decorated Athena’s exhibitions for prints and
temple at the Acropolis in drawings from Asia.
Athens. Much of it was ruined in
battle in 1687, and half of what
survived was removed between Africa
1801 and 1804 by the British An interesting collection of
diplomat Lord Elgin, and sold African sculptures, textiles,
to the British nation. Other and graphic art can be found
highlights include the Nereid in Room 25, located in the
Monument, and sculptures and basement. Famous bronzes
friezes from the Mausoleum at from the Kingdom of Benin
Halicarnassus. The beautiful stand alongside modern
1st-century BC cameo-glass African prints, paintings,
Portland Vase is located in the The Young Prince with his Parents (c.1600), and drawings, plus an array
Roman Empire section. an Indian miniature of colorful fabrics.

The Great Court and the Reading Room
Surrounding the Reading Room of the former British Library, the £100-million Great Court opened to
coincide with the new millennium. Designed by Sir Norman Foster, the Court is covered by a wide-span,
lightweight roof, creating London’s first ever indoor public square. Originally completed in 1857, the
Reading Room soon became
a world-famous center of
learning. From the outside,
however, it is now scarcely
recognizable as the space that
was favored by the likes of Karl
Marx, Mahatma Gandhi, and
George Bernard Shaw. Following
the opening of the British Library
in 1997, the Reading Room was
used to stage temporary
exhibitions, but these are now
held inside the World
Conservation and Exhibition
Centre, a vast extension opened
in 2014. The future of the now
defunct Reading Room remains
the subject of intense debate. The Great Court and Reading Room of the British Museum

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