Museum is an institution dedicated to the collection, preservation, research, exhibition, and interpretation of works of art, history, science, or culture. Museums aim to create a place of education and inspiration that will transform the way people see the world and think about their place in it. While museums may seem to be a bit of an acquired taste for some, the truth is that their educational and aesthetic value cannot be denied. Museums are an indispensable part of our global cultural heritage, and they play a key role in society as a whole.
While there is no evidence of a museum as it exists today in prehistoric or ancient times, the idea certainly developed through the centuries. In ancient times objects of artistic or religious significance were often housed in temples, while private collections were sometimes kept in specially built treasuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, museums became increasingly established and well-organized. The concept of a national museum was promoted by Denis Diderot in the ninth volume of his Encyclopedie, and the first legislation on the subject was drafted in Britain in 1753.
Many different types of museums exist, ranging from the small private collection run by a single person to the enormous institutions with thousands of staff and millions of visitors per year. Museums are also diverse in the nature of their content, from art to natural history to science, to ethnography, to military history, and more. This diversity reflects the different ways that museums can serve the needs of their visitors and communities.
Increasingly museums are responding to the impact of climate change and other environmental concerns by implementing sustainable museum practices, exhibiting objects that reflect on these issues, and advocating for change. Additionally, museums are increasingly recognizing their role in preserving cultural heritage and addressing the issue of repatriation, particularly of artifacts that were taken from the descendants of the original owners without their consent.
The field of museum studies encompasses all aspects of museums, including their collections, policies and governance structures, and visitor experiences. It also includes the study of the relationship between museums and society, and the development of new methods for the interpretation of cultural heritage.
Museums are also becoming increasingly involved in redefining the role of museums in the context of the new era of the Anthropocene, and have responded with new types of museum spaces, such as agro-museums that explore the connection between humans and their environment.
Another trend that is redefining the museum is the use of historic sites and buildings as museums, such as Mystic Seaport in Connecticut, Ironbridge Gorge in England, and the walled medieval cities of Suzdal and Vladimir in Russia. These sites are not a conventional museum in the sense of being a building with exhibitions, but are a place where a lot of history has happened and that is protected to be shared with the public. In this respect, museums could be compared to other historic sites such as battlefields and battlegrounds.