The Box, Plymouth facts for kids
The Box
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| Established | 1910 |
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| Location | Plymouth, Devon, England |
| Type | Art museum and history museum |
The Box is a cool museum, art gallery, and archive in Plymouth, England. It opened in 2020 and holds about 2 million amazing items!
The main part of the building used to be the Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery. This old museum closed in 2016. The building itself was built between 1907 and 1910. It has a grand style called Edwardian Baroque. The Box now includes this original building, plus the old Central Library and St Luke's Church.
Contents
The Story of The Box
The museum has a long and interesting history. In 2009, some new galleries opened. These showed off collections from different world cultures. You could see items from Ancient Egypt, archaeology, and local history. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, officially opened these new areas on May 25, 2009.
The old Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery closed in September 2016. It was time for a big makeover! It reopened in 2020 as The Box, Plymouth. This new project brought together many different collections. It combined items from the old museum, the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office, and the South West Film and Television Archive. It also included the South West Image Bank and local history books from the Central Library. All these treasures are now in one fantastic place!
What You Can See at The Box
The Box has many different types of collections. These include beautiful fine and decorative arts. There are also huge natural history collections. Plus, you can explore human history from different times.
The natural history collection is massive! It has over 150,000 specimens. These include plants, animals, and fossils. There's also an old library and archive about nature.
The human history collection is just as exciting. You can see very old items from prehistoric times. Many of these were found on Dartmoor. There are also important Bronze Age and Iron Age objects from Mount Batten. You can even find medieval items from Plymouth. And don't forget the artifacts from ancient Egypt and other old cultures!
The Box also has a special Moving Image collection. This includes old films and TV shows. It holds the archives from Westward Television and TSW. This means The Box helps share these old broadcasts with everyone.
You can visit permanent galleries that are always there. There are also special areas for changing exhibitions. These often show new art or unique themes. The whole project cost a lot of money. It received help from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Arts Council England. As part of the new design, fourteen old 19th-century wooden figureheads were restored. They now stand proudly in the museum's main hall.
Amazing Art Collections
The art collections at The Box are truly impressive. They include about 750 easel paintings. There are also over 3,000 watercolours and drawings. Plus, you can see at least 5,000 prints and many sculptures.
A big part of the art came from William Cotton (1794–1863). He gave his collection to the people of Plymouth in 1852. It's known as the Cottonian Collection. This collection was mostly put together by Charles Rogers (1711–1784). It even has works by Sir Joshua Reynolds, who was born nearby!
The museum also displays art from famous groups. These include the 19th-century Newlyn School and the 20th-century St. Ives group. You can also see works by the Camden Town Group. Other well-known artists featured include Edgar Degas, Edward Burne-Jones, Paul Nash, Stanley Spencer, and J. M. W. Turner. Many artists like James Northcote and Samuel Prout were born in the local area.
Who Supports The Box?
The Box is owned and run by Plymouth City Council. It also gets money from Arts Council England. This helps with its daily operations.
Other groups also give grants for special projects. These include buying new items or taking care of old ones. Organizations like the Heritage Lottery Fund and The Art Fund help with this.
